


Solstice

by Moon_Willow_23



Series: Solstice [1]
Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Adopted Children, Aro is a Paranoid Asshole, BAMF Carlisle Cullen, BAMF Esme Cullen, BAMF Jasper Hale, Dhampir, Edward Cullen Being An Asshole, Human Alice Cullen, Larger Supernatural World, Mermaids, Multi, Philosophical Emmett Cullen, Possessive Alice Cullen, Protective Carlisle Cullen, Protective Edward Cullen, Protective Emmett Cullen, Protective Esme Cullen, Protective Rosalie Hale, Protective Siblings, Rosalie Hale has Feelings, Sibling Love, Snarky Edward Cullen, Thunderbirds - Freeform, Witches, accidental teenager acquisition, actual werewolves, snarky siblings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:14:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 109,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25417525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moon_Willow_23/pseuds/Moon_Willow_23
Summary: Alice Brandon's world collapsed in on itself when she was nine-years-old. Her mother was murdered, her father married his mistress, and her stepmother turned out to be an actual vampire. For seven years, her only solace were her psychic visions of a family that she knows will one day be hers. After a sickening vision, Alice's only choice is to take her sister, Cynthia, and get as far away from Biloxi as possible. However, no vampire seeking power would let someone with Alice's gifts go that easily, Maria especially.(Cross-Posted on FF.net)
Relationships: Alice Cullen & Carlisle Cullen, Alice Cullen/Jasper Hale, Billy Black & Original Female Character(s), Carlisle Cullen & Edward Cullen, Carlisle Cullen & Emmett Cullen, Carlisle Cullen & Jasper Hale, Carlisle Cullen & Rosalie Hale, Carlisle Cullen/Esme Cullen, Carmen/Eleazar (Twilight), Charlotte/Peter (Twilight), Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Emmett Cullen/Rosalie Hale, Garrett/Kate (Twilight), Harry Clearwater/Sue Clearwater, Jacob Black/Renesmee Cullen, James/Victoria (Twilight), Mike Newton/Jessica Stanley, Sue Clearwater/Charlie Swan
Series: Solstice [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1840978
Comments: 1
Kudos: 17





	1. Preface

**Author's Note:**

> "She could hear those church bells ringing, ringing/And up in the loft, that whole choir singing, singing/Fold your hands and close your eyes/Yeah, it's all gonna be alright/And just listen to the church bells ringing, ringing/Yeah, they're ringing..."  
> -"Church Bells," Carrie Underwood

It was late, the sky a dark and inky black, and the salty-sweet gulf air wafted through the open window of a little girl’s bedroom. The little girl slept soundly despite the noise coming from the room down the hall. A woman sobbed loudly as a man struck her with his fist each time that he berated her for something beyond her control. When the sobbing stopped, when the air became still, the man gathered the woman in his arms and carried her down to the house’s private dock and onto the boat moored there. He started the boat’s engine, and the sound was enough to wake the girl. Scrambling from her bed, she made her way to the window and peered down to see her mother lying on the deck of the boat as her father drove it off towards the darkened horizon and out of her line of sight.

The girl sat at her window until the first rays of morning light showed the boat’s return. Only her father was on board; her mother was nowhere in sight. A bronze-skinned woman met her father on the dock, and the little girl watched as he smiled and pulled the woman in for a passionate kiss. The girl crawled back into her bed and wept silently as she returned to sleep. Her mother was never coming back from the water.


	2. Foresight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance/Never settle for the path of least resistance/Livin' might mean takin' chances, but they're worth takin'/Lovin' might be a mistake, but it's worth makin'/Don't let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter/When you come close to sellin' out, reconsider/Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance/And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance..."  
> -"I Hope You Dance," LeeAnn Womack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: MENTIONS OF POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE TOPICS AHEAD!

The day I left my childhood home, I had only one goal in mind. I had to get my little sister and myself as far from that house as physically possible. It had been a Friday night when we left, our bags packed and our taxicab paid for in advance, and I lied smoothly to the ticket taker at the train station that Cynthia and I were on our way to visit with our aunt and uncle in New Orleans while our parents were on a romantic anniversary getaway.

“Ali, where are we goin’?” Cynthia asked me sleepily as the train click-clacked along the tracks, already rocking her to sleep.

“We’ll get off this train in New Orleans, and I’ll call Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael from a payphone. They’ll help us get to where they live, and we can stay with them.” I told her confidently, but I wasn’t so sure myself that we’d be able to stay with our mother’s sister and her husband in their rainy little town outside Seattle.

Cynthia bought it, however, and curled herself into my side before falling asleep. The train rumbled along down the tracks, and I tried to keep myself from thinking about why I was taking my six-year-old sister from one end of the country to the other with little planning, little money, and little hope for a secure future. Normally, that wasn’t something that I worried too much about, the future rarely being a surprise to me with my gifts, but things were different now.

My mother disappeared when I was nine-years-old, just six months after Cynthia had been born, and she had been declared a missing person by the police almost immediately. I knew that she’d never come home, and my mother’s family believed me. No one else did, and I didn’t blame them. Psychics are common in my mother’s family, but outsiders just think that the Beaumont women are all crazy. Who would believe a little girl who says she had a dream about Daddy beating Mommy to death and taking her body away on the boat late at night weeks before it actually happened? Exactly, and I knew I’d have to live with what I knew until I could somehow prove what Richard had done. Since the day he dropped Mama’s body in the Gulf of Mexico, he hadn’t been my Daddy; he hadn’t been my father since the day he married Maria, his mistress, two months after Mama had been declared legally dead by an accidental drowning after falling off the family boat during a solo, moonlight cruise on the Gulf.

Maria was the reason he’d killed her, that much I knew, but I also knew what Maria truly was behind those dark curls and simpering smiles the woman so easily faked. I knew that blood red irises lay hidden behind her chocolate brown color contacts, and I knew that her intentions with Richard were far from merely having a romantic love affair. She needed his money, what was rightfully mine and Cynthia’s money, to fund her campaign to regain lost territory along the Texas-Mexico boarder in the Southern Vampire Wars that most who knew about them believed to have ended before World War I pulled America into the fray. Yes, my legal stepmother was, with no doubt in my mind, a vampire.

Vampires, like most supernatural creatures our parents tell us are just scary stories, are real. Maria didn’t know that I knew her secret, though, and I hoped that it would stay that way for a few more years. I couldn’t have her know that I knew before I got Cynthia to our aunt and uncle, before I got myself to the one person I knew would be able to keep me safe from her while also being the last person she’d expect to protect me: Jasper Whitlock.

Major Jasper Whitlock had been a part of the Texas Cavalry during the Civil War when Maria and her two coven mates, Lucy and Nettie, found him riding back from Galveston on his own. Maria turned him into a vampire against his will, and she tricked him into thinking that she loved him more than anyone else ever could. The fifty years he spent with her, time in which both Lucy and Nettie had been executed for betraying her, Maria had left Jasper more than a little traumatized. She kept him around because, like my precognitive abilities, he had a power of his own: empathy. Though he could control the emotions of Maria’s soldiers and opponents, Jasper could also feel every emotion his victims felt before he drank their blood.

Jasper broke away from Maria and her coven in the 1920s with the help of his best friend and former coven mate, Peter, and Peter’s mate, Charlotte, when they got word that someone was coming to destroy most of the coven after hearing about Jasper’s gift. He parted ways with them by the late 1940s, and he remained a solitary nomad until he was found near-starving in an alley in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania in 1951 by a vampire by the name of Dr. Carlisle Cullen; seeing the newborn vampire version of himself in Jasper, he offered an alternative to human blood that very few other vampires would’ve ever considered: animal blood. He also offered Jasper a place in his family, alongside Mrs. Cullen and their three adopted children; Jasper had felt how genuine Dr. Cullen’s compassion was, so he accepted.

I had had visions of Jasper for as long as I could remember, and I knew that the Cullens had recently moved to my aunt’s town. I also knew that Jasper was meant to be mine, and I was meant to be his. No one was going to stop me from finding him, especially not Maria.

Cynthia didn’t wake until we reached New Orleans shortly after dawn. I ushered my sister into Union Passenger Terminal and began looking for a phone. I sighed out of relief when my eyes landed on the payphone, and I took the correct change out of the coin pouch inside my purse and inserted it into the machine quickly. I dialed my aunt’s home number and silently prayed that she answered. It rang three times, and then I heard a voice on the other end.

“ _Hello?_ ” it was Aunt Catherine.

“Aunt Catherine, we need your help!” I told her urgently, though I kept my voice quiet as to not attract attention.

“ _Alice, what’s wrong? Is Richard hurt?_ ” she asked me, and I snorted into the receiver.

“I wish he was, but I grabbed Cynth and got out before I could hurt him.” I said, looking around nervously before continuing. “I had another vision…the bad kind.”

“ _Honey, you can tell me anything, you know that._ ” my aunt insisted, and I bit my lip as I glanced back at Cynthia sitting in a nearby chair, clutching her baby doll to her chest.

“Richard…in the vision…he was _touching_ Cynthia, and I told him to leave her alone the second I woke up after seeing it. He hit me across the face, but it wasn’t hard enough to bruise. I waited until he and Maria were out at this month’s charity gala before buying train tickets for Cynth and me to New Orleans, and we’re at the train station there now. Aunt Catherine, we can’t go back there, not when he’s going to hurt my sister.” I told her, tensing as I felt eyes on me for a moment before a gentle wave of calm came over me.

“ _Alice, how much do you have on the card I gave you for emergencies?_ ” Aunt Catherine asked me almost automatically, and I told her that I had barely spent anything. “ _Good, that’s really good. I’m going to put another four-hundred dollars on the card, and you’re going to take your sister to the airport, buy the two of you one-way tickets to Seattle, and get your behinds to Washington so Uncle Michael and I can bring you to our house. Understood?_ ”

“Yes, Ma’am.” I said. “Thank you.”

“ _I love you both, Alice, and I’ll see you when you get here._ ” she said, and then the call ended with a soft _click_.

I took a deep breath before turning back to my little sister. Cynthia looked up at me with wide puppy eyes, and I smiled at her. She took that as a good sign and smiled back while I knelt down in front of her.

“Aunt Catherine’s going to put more money on my emergency card so I can buy us plane tickets. We need to go find a cab and get to the airport, buy the tickets, and get something to eat. Let’s get going.” I told her, and she stood up with her doll in one hand and my hand in the other.

Three hours later, everything had fallen apart like the last sandcastle I’d attempted making with my sister. Because I was not yet sixteen, just a few weeks shy of my birthday, no airline would allow me to fly with Cynthia so she wouldn’t be classified as an unaccompanied minor and require her guardian’s permission to fly by herself. I knew better than to risk alerting Richard to what we’d done, so I took her to the airport’s Café Du Monde and bought her some beignets. She managed to get her face caked with powdered sugar, so I took her into the ladies’ room to clean her face off before I could even begin my search for another payphone. From what I’d seen when I’d been purchasing our train tickets, it would take us about three days to take the train from New Orleans to Seattle, and I wasn’t sure we had that much time.

“Ali!” I heard my sister chirp as we were exiting the ladies’ room, and I was confused by what she was trying to tell me until I collided with something solid.

Looking up, I felt my eyes go wide. Somehow, despite everything my visions had told me to expect, I found myself completely blindsided by the man standing before me. His honey blond hair reached down to his chin in ringlets, and concerned golden eyes stared down at me past the ever so elegantly sloped nose. The solid object I’d bumped into had been Jasper Whitlock, and the fact that Cynthia was seeing him too meant that I wasn’t crazy. I watched the way his expression shifted as my emotions changed.

“You’ve kept me waiting a long time, Major.” I said quietly, though my smirk and emotions were enough for him to realize that I wasn’t much of a threat.

“My apologies, Ma’am. How’d you know that I used to be an officer?” he asked, and I realized that he’d been whose eyes I’d felt on me at the train station as well as the person responsible for the sudden calmness I’d felt while talking to Aunt Catherine.

“Probably the same way you knew to go into that train station. You’re not the only one with gifts, Mister Hale.” I said, and he blinked in surprise.

“What would you know about my gifts, Ms.?” he asked me, this time his tone having a slightly worried edge to it.

“Brandon, Mary-Alice Brandon, and this is my baby sister, Cynthia-Leigh. You’re an empath, but I’m a psychic. Seriously, I see the future and the past, and I know what you are, but I’m not afraid. Not of you.” I told him, and he chuckled darkly.

“You must not know me as well as you think you do, Ms. Brandon.” he said, but I snorted in initial response.

“I know you better than I know my own mind, Mister Hale, and my vampire demon stepmother isn’t getting you back no matter what she thinks.” I told him, my knowledge of Jasper telling me that being honest with him worked the fastest in getting him to believe me. “I don’t share well, and Maria’s already taken everything but my sister from me.”

“Maria?” he asked in alarm, and I nodded.

“By the end of the year, Richard Brandon will probably be either dead or in prison, and she’ll have taken his money to finance her new coven. More newborns means more expenses, or so I’ve gathered. She doesn’t like it when we spill things on our clothes, so I doubt she’s any better with bloodstains.” I said, my voice still barely above a whisper.

“You’re looking for a way to Seattle?” Jasper asked, and I nodded.

“Forks, technically, but yes. My mother’s sister lives there, and I have to get Cynthia somewhere safe before Richard realizes we’re gone. It’s not safe for her to be with him anymore. Then again, it never really was.” I said, and he looked to be deep in thought as a vision appeared in my mind of the three of us boarding a private plane. “Yes, please, and thank you.”

Jasper looked up at me, surprised that I knew what he was about to offer, and chuckled. A grin began to appear on his face as I held out my free hand, and he took it without the slightest bit of hesitation. Though I knew he was unnaturally cold as a vampire, there was a growing warmth between our interlocked hands. I smiled softly at Jasper, and he smiled back at me before we both turned out attention back to Cynthia as she skipped ahead of us. For the first time since I’d had the vision of my mother’s death, I felt hope.

The private plane that we boarded, a Gulfstream jet, belonged to Jasper’s adoptive parents, Carlisle and Esme. It was one of three in the family, he told me, and it had a custom-built entertainment system that included a flat-screen television that was keeping Cynthia occupied while Jasper and I talked. I told him everything I knew about Maria’s plans, but both of us agreed that stopping her would prove a bigger risk than letting her get away with the money. I knew that Jasper was far more interested in me and my gift than anything else, and he recognized my amusement.

“Ask me anything you want to know about what I’ve seen, Jasper, don’t be shy.” I urged, smiling across the table at him.

“Why aren’t you scared of me?” he asked, and I rolled my eyes at him while giggling. “I have felt your fear multiple times today, but not once was it in relation to me. Why?”

“Why ask me that when you can feel the emotions that I do have concerning you?” I responded, and he looked down at the table between us.

“I tried, but it doesn’t make sense. I’m a monster, Alice, and monsters don’t get the girl. That’s for the knight in shining armor.” he said, not expecting me to reach across the table and push up his shirt sleeves to reveal his scar-laden arms.

“These scars are marks of a truly brave soldier, one who kept fighting no matter how much he wanted it all to end. I don’t see a monster, and neither should you.” I told him, ghosting my fingers along his forearms.

“I still slip up more than any other member of my family.” Jasper said, and I nodded as it was true.

“You do, and I expect that you will forever. You feel everyone else’s thirst on top of your own, don’t you? It’s the vampire equivalent to human hunger.” I said, and he thought about this.

“What if I hurt you or your sister?” he asked, and I felt my lips twist into a smirk.

“Have you had even the slightest inclination to hurt us yet?” I asked.

“No, I can’t say that I have.” he answered.

“From what I’ve seen, you will be the death of me, Jasper, but that’s only the beginning. Don’t worry, you’ll be used to the visions in no time.” I said, and he smiled.

A few hours into the flight, Cynthia let out a yawn, her third in as many minutes, so I rolled my eyes and walked over to her. She knew what was about to happen and sat up just enough for me to sit down before laying her head in my lap. I gently ran my fingers through her hair as I softly sang her to sleep.

“I hope you never lose your sense of wonder/You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger/May you never take one single breath for granted/God forbid love ever leave you empty handed/I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean/Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens/Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance/And when you get the choice to/sit it out or dance/I hope you dance/I hope you dance…” Cynthia’s eyes drifted closed, but I could tell by her breathing that she wasn’t yet asleep, but her breathing evened out by the time I reached the end of the song.

“I take it this happens often with the two of you?” Jasper asked quietly as he sat down on the other side of the long couch.

“She doesn’t sleep well in unfamiliar places. Thankfully, she’s been to Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael’s before, about two years ago, so she should settle in just fine once we’re there.” I said hopefully, but I frowned before I could stop myself.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, and I sighed.

“How easy would it be to disappear once I turn sixteen in a few weeks?” I asked instead, and he quirked his brow at me.

“Darlin’, where’d you be able to go that’d be safer than Forks, a town guarded by both vampires and shapeshifting wolves?” he replied, but my eyes shifted down towards my sleeping sister.

“Jasper, whether or not Richard signs Cynthia and me over to our aunt and uncle, Maria is coming for me. She might not come looking for me herself, but she’ll send someone. She wants my gift, just like she wanted yours.” I told him, wishing that my sister could always remain as innocent as she was in that moment. “I can’t risk whoever comes looking for me to hurt or use Cynthia to get to me. She’s all I have left.”

“And you shouldn’t have to leave her, Alice.” he said. “If you want me to trust your visions, then you need to trust me. I’m not gonna let Maria or anyone who works for her do you or your sister any harm, and I’m sure that my parents would agree.”

“But not your siblings?” I asked, curious.

“Emmett would, probably, but Rosalie wouldn’t. Edward, well, that depends on the time of day.” he admitted. “If Carlisle tells him to do something, he generally does it, so he’ll probably help me keep you safe.”

“But if I ever ran?” I asked, and he smiled at me.

“I’ll be there.” he said, and I smiled back at him before laying my head against the pillow behind me and falling asleep for the first time since I’d snuck Cynthia and myself out of Richard’s house and onto that train.

**As I slept, I felt the familiar pull of a vision. I could see myself, maybe a year or two older, walking up to a rather pale brunette girl being hounded by a group of teenagers at a table in a school cafeteria. The teens at the table went quiet as I approached, but I shrugged their silence off and made to introduce myself to the girl.**

**“ _Hi, I’m Alice Cullen; you must be Bella, and I’m sure Jessica’s told you about everyone already. My boyfriend, Jasper, and I were wondering if you’d like to sit with us._ ” I said to this girl, and she gave me a small smile and nodded before following me to a table away from both her original table and the table at which I saw Jasper’s siblings.**

**“ _Jessica said that you guys don’t sit with Jasper’s siblings after some sort of falling out or something?_ ” Bella wondered, and I gave a hum of acknowledgement.**

**“ _Rosalie has jealousy issues that she’s trying really hard to work through, Emmett’s just trying to be there for her, and Edward’s still mad that I stole his room._ ” I told her, and she laughed lightly at my words.**

**“ _You stole his room?_ ” she asked, and I nodded.**

**“ _I was adopted by the Cullens last year, and Edward’s room had the best view. When I asked Mom and Dad if it was possible for Edward to move his stuff to the guest room so I had the natural light for my art, Mom got the boxes and Dad got the paint._ ” I told her, and she laughed again, though I could see Edward rolling his eyes at my statement as I looked over at where he sat with Rosalie and Emmett.**

**I could see the trio of vampires tense as I introduced Bella and Jasper, the way they all watched as Jasper shook Bella’s hand and offered her the seat on his right side. He didn’t appear to have any increased desire to sink his fangs into her throat, and I looked up at him with a look that told him I had been right. His expression told me that he was agreeing. His appreciation for Bella grew a moment later when she asked if either of us knew how to play guitar.**

**“ _I’ve actually been teaching Alice for a couple of months, and Dad plays, too. Do you play?_ ” he answered her question with one of his own, and then the two of them were engrossed in conversation that I hoped future-me would understand better.**

I woke, in the present, to Jasper staring at me amusedly from the other end of the couch. At some point, Cynthia had gotten up and was now at the table with a juice box and a cookie. I raised my eyebrow at Jasper, and he let out a low chuckle before opening his arms to me.

“She got up about fifteen minutes ago, and we keep human snacks on the plane when we have longer flights so that the pilots don’t get suspicious. We also make sure that they know they’re welcome to have snacks themselves. You felt so peaceful and content that I didn’t want to wake you just yet. Good dreams?” he said as I settled myself in his arms, and I nodded before explaining.

“I had a vision. Your sister doesn’t like me much, and she won’t for at least a year, maybe longer, but I think Edward’s the one I aggravate the most.” I told him, smiling happily.

“Oh? How so?” Jasper asked, and I giggled.

“I’m moving in with you soon, Carlisle and Esme are supposedly adopting me, and I’m going to steal Edward’s room for my art needs. He won’t like having his stuff moved, but Carlisle and Esme are apparently all for it.” I said, and he laughed the fullest, deepest, richest laugh I’d heard from him since finally meeting him in person.

“Edward’s the first kid brought into the family, and Rosalie’s been the only girl for so long, I have no trouble believing any of that, Darlin’. Not one bit.” Jasper said, and I couldn’t help but feel prideful just a little.

When the plane landed in Seattle, my sister and I followed Jasper to a dark Mercedes that he said belonged to Carlisle; he didn’t have a car of his own because he rarely went anywhere without one of his siblings that he couldn’t go on foot. As Jasper merged onto I-5, heading North, I realized that I hadn’t called Aunt Catherine to let her know that we’d made it out of New Orleans after all. Jasper picked up on my worrying, especially since it was probably near-palpable even to someone without his gift, and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.

“I called Esme, and she took care of it. She said that she’d call your aunt an tell her that, since I was visiting a friend in New Orleans over spring break, I would bring you and Cynthia to her house on my way home. Esme even went through the whole unaccompanied minor rules for airlines with your aunt to explain how we met.” he said, and I felt more at ease, but curious all the same.

“How often do you four refer to Esme and Carlisle as Mom and Dad in public?” I asked, thinking back to my vision.

“Not very often, but not many people talk to us as it is.” Jasper answered after a moment of thought.

“And at home?” I asked, and he frowned.

“Mostly, it’s just on special occasions like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and whenever Rosalie and Emmett’s sexual escapades result in property damage.” he admitted quietly, and I frowned.

“That’s got to change.” I said, and he gained a curious expression, so I continued. “Carlisle and Esme give all of you a roof over your heads and clothes on your backs on top of other luxuries I’m sure you wouldn’t otherwise have. But just as important as all of that, they genuinely love you. I know that you know that better than anyone, Jasper, but they need to know it, too. For what she lost that led to her becoming a vampire, Esme especially deserves the title of Mom more than any other mom out there.”

“I have three PhDs, and I have never thought about it like that. I completely agree that they are both owed more respect than we four sometimes give. I should try to change that.” he said, and I smiled to myself over my first vision-based victory.

When Jasper pulled into Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael’s driveway, my aunt and uncle were standing on the front porch, and my cousin, Lauren, was sitting behind them in one of the two chairs be the door. While I got Cynthia out of the backseat, Jasper grabbed our bags from the trunk. Cynthia ran towards Aunt Catherine, and I felt immediate relief at the sight of my sister wrapped up tight in our aunt’s arms. I shot a look over my shoulder at Jasper, but he chuckled and gave me a look that said he had nothing to do with that feeling for once. Uncle Michael made his way over to us as I saw Lauren and Aunt Catherine taking Cynthia inside the house.

“Jasper, thank you. Cathy and I were surprised when your mother called, but you have no idea how relieved we were when Esme said that you’d found the girls and were going to drop them off with us on your way home.” my uncle said, and Jasper gave him a pleasant smile that I knew hid the fact that he knew exactly how my aunt and uncle felt.

“Mr. Mallory, it’s nothing for me to help someone in need. After what Alice told me on the flight from New Orleans, she’s safer here than the alternative. They both are, actually.” he told Uncle Michael, and I inched closer to Jasper reflexively as thoughts of Maria entered my mind.

“Have you called him yet?” I asked, and my uncle knew who I was referring to when I said “him.”

“Richard is going to call us back in the morning. He seems receptive to the idea of transferring custody, but only for Cynthia.” Uncle Michael admitted, and I turned towards Jasper.

“What reasons would he have for only giving you custody of one of his daughters?” he asked. “As a kid who’s been through custody changes before, it makes no logical sense.”

“Alice is… _different_.” my uncle said as though I wasn’t standing right in front of him. “Richard would prefer her being sent to the State psychiatric hospital rather than let her live with Cathy and me here.”

“Alice would prefer if people didn’t talk about her like she’s both crazy and not right here.” I said, albeit snappily. “Jasper knows about my visions, Uncle Michael.”

“I think they’re amazing, and the fact that Alice hasn’t gone crazy after the things she’s seen shows how strong she is, I think.” Jasper added, and I smiled to myself at the protective edge his voice took as he jumped to my defense.

“We intend to fight to the best of our abilities to keep both of you, Alice, but you know that we don’t have the same kind of money that Richard’s got filling his accounts.” Uncle Michael told me, but Jasper merely gave my hand a squeeze and smirked.

“Let me talk to my parents, and money won’t be an issue.” he said, and I had to stop myself from bursting into laughter at my uncle’s expression. “You can’t go back there. I’ll see what Mom and Dad think’s best.”

“Thank you very much, Jasper.” I said as I pushed myself up on my toes and pecked him on the cheek. “You’ve been very sweet.”

Jasper left shortly thereafter, and Uncle Michael led me inside to what would be my room as long as I was there. None of us discussed why Cynthia and I had left Mississippi, and it was mostly for Cynthia’s benefit. No one thought that she should be burdened with knowing what her father was planning on doing to her. I thought about this again before bed, and I was surprised when my cousin knocked on my doorframe.

“Oh, hey, Lauren. What’s up?” I asked her, and she pulled me into a hug without warning.

“He didn’t ever do that to you, did he?” she asked quietly, and I shook my head as she let me go.

“Richard’s never been that stupid. By the looks of the vision, Cynth would’ve been at least nine or ten, so I probably was already out of the house. He’d never risk me being able to tell the cops that I saw him carrying Mama onto the boat that night. Even if I hadn’t had the vision, I still saw it.” I said, and Lauren gave me a sad, sympathetic smile.

“So…Jasper Hale?” she asked, and I giggled.

“He’s sweet. I’ve had visions of him before, but seeing him in person was…incredible.” I admitted, and she squealed.

“I can’t believe you’ve had psychic visions of the hottest single guy at Forks High School!” Lauren asked excitedly. “Have you seen if he’ll ever have a girlfriend?”

“Promise you won’t get completely pissed at me when I tell you.” I demanded, and she sighed before agreeing.

“Fine, just don’t tell me that he asks Jessica Stanley out before me. She may be my best friend, but she can’t have Jasper if I can’t have Edward.” Lauren said, and I took a deep breath.

“He’s not asking you or Jessica out because he’s going to be with me. Laur, I’m sorry…ish, but it’s true. It’s what I’ve seen more frequently than any other scenario.” I told my cousin, and she stared at me with wide eyes for a moment before her expression shifted into something more sinister.

“Wow, I never thought that Jasper was the type to fall for the epic sob story. Maybe it’s a pity date?” Lauren wondered aloud before leaving for her own room.

I tried to put Lauren’s words out of my mind as I got ready for bed, checking in on Cynthia one last time before going into my room and closing the door. When I turned around, I jumped slightly when I saw Jasper standing in front of my window. Suddenly, I was glad that my room faced the backyard instead of the street.

“I know she’s your cousin, Darlin’, but just ignore her.” he said, wrapping me in his arms, and I let my head fall against his chest.

“Stay?” I asked, and he answered by leading me over to the bed and sitting down beside me.

“Other than Lauren, what’s wrong? I know I can feel sadness and uncertainty, but why?” he asked gently, and I leaned into his shoulder.

“My own family thinks I’m crazy.” I told him. “During dinner, Uncle Michael told Aunt Catherine what you said. She said that I shouldn’t have told you about my visions, that I don’t need to draw unnecessary attention to myself.”

“Well, in that case, I have some good news for you, Darlin’.” Jasper said. “I talked to my parents, and they’re fully prepared to adopt you the legal, human way if it comes down to it.”

“Do they think I’m crazy? Do you?” I asked, and I felt his rumble of laughter.

“Alice, you are most definitely crazy, but it’s not because of your visions. You’re cuddling with a vampire over a century-and-a-half old, who also has a pretty dodgy record concerning human safety and other related things, as if this is the safest place you could be. That, you frightening little monster, is what makes you crazy.” he told me as he slid to the other side of the bed and removed his boots, and I smiled.

“Thank you.” I said as I got under the blankets. “I’d rather be your kind of crazy than their kind of sane any day of the week.”

“Get some sleep, Darlin’. I’ll be here when you wake up, I promise.” Jasper said softly, and I went to sleep that night knowing that, for the first time in seven years, I was completely safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, sweets, that's the first chapter. Don't worry, for we shall be seeing more of the other Cullens, Bella, and wolf packs soon. Stay tuned!


	3. A Deep Breath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "But how do you wait for heaven/And who has that much time/And how do you keep your feet on the ground/When you know/That you were born, you were born to fly..."  
>  -"Born to Fly," Sara Evans

I woke the next morning to the sight of cloudy skies and Jasper speaking so softly that I couldn’t hear what he was saying. Whoever the conversation was with, he didn’t look very pleased as the call continued. I moved closer to him and threaded my fingers through his. I caught him rolling his eyes, and the annoyance rolled off of him swiftly before being replaced by a feeling of pure adoration as he shifted his gaze from the window to me. He mouthed the words “Good morning, Darlin’,” and said something else into his cellphone before ending the call.

“Is everything okay?” I asked him, and he snorted.

“Edward got home from hunting last night and caught onto thoughts about you. He called to let me know that he thinks I’m crazy for being alone with a human and that our parents are crazy for considering adopting a human.” Jasper told me, and I giggled quietly. “I reminded him which one of us actually has a PhD in psychology, and he asked me when I’d be home.”

“And when will that be?” I asked with a smile.

“Your aunt and uncle are waking up now, so I’ll probably head out in a few minutes. I figured that I could go home, change clothes, probably fight with Edward some more, and call to check up on you in a few hours as a pretense for me asking you on a proper date.” he said, and I leaned in to peck him on the cheek.

“I’d love to, Jasper.” I told him.

“In that case, I’ll try to not let any possible fighting with my brother go on for too long.” he said, and I shook my head at him.

“Just from the visions I’ve had, I sometimes which one’s the bigger drama queen, Rosalie or Edward.” I said, and Jasper chuckled.

Jasper left when he heard my aunt and uncle leave their bedroom, and I grabbed some clothes and went into the bathroom Cynthia and I were to share. By the time I made it downstairs, only my aunt and uncle were there; neither Lauren nor Cynthia had made it out of bed before me. Aunt Catherine was standing at the kitchen island with the phone on the countertop beside her as she buttered a few slices of toast. Uncle Michael was a little way down from Aunt Catherine at the coffee machine refilling his mug.

“I know what you’re going to say, Richard, and you know how I feel about that. Alice is not going into any mental health facility against her will, and she isn’t crazy. The best thing for you to do is to just let the girls stay here, and you and I both know that. You didn’t even realize that they were gone until Michael called you last night, and that won’t look good in court.” I heard her say as she angrily dropped another piece of buttered toast onto the stack.

“ _Catherine, we’ve talked about this. Even Maria thinks that if she keeps thinking that she’s actually seeing the future, she’ll never be able to function as a normal human being!_ ” I heard Richard’s voice say from the phone, and I rolled my eyes.

“Every therapist you’ve ever sent Alice to has told you the same thing, Richard.” my aunt argued. “She’s perfectly sane, no thanks to you, and has no discernable mental illness or defect. Could you please tell me what qualifications Maria, the woman you were cheating on my baby sister with, has that these doctors don’t?”

“ _You have no proof that Maria has anything to do with Melissa’s death._ ” Richard responded, and I muffled the laughter threatening to burst from my mouth.

“I never said that she did, nor did I say that I had proof. I merely implied that your Mexican whore isn’t qualified to diagnose my niece any differently than four highly qualified psychiatrists have already done.” Aunt Catherine said, and I could tell that she’d found an opening based on the familiar, knowing expression she wore. “Now, this sudden outburst from you concerning my sister’s death may be of interest to my lawyer. You’ve known that I record my phone conversations for as long as you’ve known me, and I think I should let you go so that I can call him.”

“ _No, Catherine, don’t do that._ ” Richard exclaimed, and I noted the confident expression my aunt was wearing. “ _Look, you guys can have custody of Cynthia; it’s not like I even spend that much time with her because of work, and too many people assume that Maria’s her nanny or something when they go anywhere together. As for Mary-Alice, she can stay until the end of the school year, but you’ll see before then that she **is**_ _sick no matter what those other doctors said._ ”

“We’ll still need the proper paperwork for custody of both girls, Richard, and I expect it either on my lawyer’s desk or in my mailbox by the end of the week. Make it happen, or the recording of this conversation goes to my lawyer instead.” my aunt said, and no further response came from the phone before a dial tone sounded.

“So, we can stay?” I asked, and my aunt and uncle looked up at me with smiles on their faces.

“Yes, Alice, you girls can stay.” Aunt Catherine said, but Uncle Michael sighed.

“Richard’s going to try to get you back in two months, but we’ll fight him tooth and nail to keep you.” he added, and, though I knew he was right, I didn’t think that his fight would end well.

Breakfast went about as I’d expected it to go. Lauren was happy to talk to Cynthia and keep her entertained, but she pointedly ignored me unless it became absolutely necessary to talk to me. My sister didn’t appear to notice, and Uncle Michael brushed it off as teenage in-fighting. Aunt Catherine just shook her head at her daughter’s behavior and asked me if I felt that Cynthia and I would be ready to start school the following week.

“We didn’t bring any school supplies with us, so we’d have to go shopping. Other than that, I think that we’d both be able to start by then if our old schools can fax our files up here by next week.” I said, and she nodded.

“Okay, that’s most likely doable. I still have Lauren’s supply lists, so we can go shopping tomorrow; I’ll get the paperwork either tomorrow if Richard overnights it or Thursday if he does standard-express, so we can get you registered at your new schools by Friday at the latest.” she said, and I agreed.

“If you’re driving up to Port Angeles tomorrow, can I join you?” Lauren asked. “I wanted to get a head start on ideas for mine and Jessica’s prom dresses for next year based on what I see the other girls buying for this year.”

“If you get up in the morning, yes, I see no problem with you coming along, sweetie. If you don’t get up, though, I will leave you here to browse magazines and the internet for ideas.” Aunt Catherine said, and I noted the way that Lauren nodded sheepishly at her mother before turning her attention back to Cynthia.

After breakfast, Aunt Catherine went to help Cynthia unpack, Lauren called out to everyone in the house that she was off to Jessica’s, and Uncle Michael left for his job in Port Angeles at Olympic Medical Center; I was left to unpack on my own, so I was still putting things away when the phone rang. I thought nothing of it at first, but then Aunt Catherine called my name. That was when I remembered that Jasper had promised to call me once he’d stopped arguing with his brother. I jumped up from where I had been arranging my shoes by style, color, and heel-height and rushed down the stairs to where my aunt was standing with the handset from the front hall in her hand.

“Yes, Aunt Catherine?” I asked, playing dumb.

“You have a phone call.” she told me with a playful smile, and I accepted the phone from her.

“Hello?” I said as I brought the handset to my ear.

“ _Hey, Alice, it’s Jasper Hale._ ” Jasper said, likely expecting Aunt Catherine to have grabbed the handset from the kitchen just as I had been, but my aunt remained in front of me as I responded.

“Oh, hey. Were you calling for Lauren? If you were, you just missed her.” I said, still playing dumb for my aunt’s sake.

“ _Actually, I was calling to see if everything was going alright with you and Cynthia today._ ” he replied, and I let slip a soft giggle.

“We’re both doing well. In fact, we’ll be staying around here for a while.” I told him, watching as my aunt stepped into the kitchen and lowering my voice to a whisper. “She’s going for the other phone now.”

“ _Knew it’d happen eventually._ ” he said quietly before continuing on at a normal volume. “ _So, I should expect to see you at school next week?_ ”

“I sure hope so. Once the paperwork my aunt and uncle need to get Cynthia and I registered arrives, we’ll be set. We’re planning a trip to Port Angeles tomorrow to get school supplies and stuff like that.” I said, inching closer to the kitchen door.

“ _Maybe we’ll bump into one another while you’re there. I’m supposed to run a few errands for my mom tomorrow, so I’ve got to drive up that way anyway._ ” Jasper said, and I giggled again.

“That doesn’t sound very much like wishful thinking; in fact, I think that you sound very confident that we’ll see one another tomorrow.” I said, and he chuckled.

“ _Well, I mean, if it’s not too bold of me, I would like to get to know you better._ ” he said, and I inwardly awed at his words.

“I wouldn’t think it too bold.” I told him as I looked up at Aunt Catherine who looked back at me with only the slightest hint of embarrassment. “Hold on just a second.”

“Alice, sweetheart, I won’t stop you if you decide to see this young man. Whatever Lauren does or however she reacts is entirely up to her; this is yours and Jasper’s decision, not hers.” my aunt said, smiling widely, and I nodded.

“Aunt Cathy!” we both turned towards the stairs as my sister called down the stairs, and my aunt gave me a pat on the shoulder before heading towards my sister.

“I’d like for us to get to know one another better, too, Jasper.” I said into the phone as I watched my aunt hurry back upstairs to check on Cynthia, hearing what sounded like running water in the background. “She’s gone to check on Cynthia; where are you?”

“ _I had to get out of Edward’s hearing range, so I’m down by the river at the boundary line we’ve got with the wolves. My brother still isn’t taking me not being under constant supervision very well._ ” Jasper told me with a chuckle, and I shook my head and giggled softly.

“You never should have been under constant supervision in the first place. From everything I’ve seen, your siblings, your brothers in particular, are the ones who make things more difficult for you on the whole thirst front.” I told him.

“ _Well, I might disagree about those first few years, Darlin’. I struggled a lot, more than I’m proud of, but after the first thirty years went by, I shouldn’t have had to have a constant babysitter. That I can agree with, and so do my parents now that we’ve talked._ ” he said, and I was glad that Carlisle and Esme understood what I had in so far as how Jasper’s powers could affect his thirst.

“Are you coming back over tonight?” I asked quietly, and his end of the call went quiet for a few moments.

“ _I’ll probably be gone before you wake up, but yes. Just leave your window unlocked, and I’ll let myself in, alright?_ ” Jasper answered, and I agreed.

“Alright, I’ll do that.” I paused before deciding to tell him what was on my mind. “If Maria doesn’t send one of her spies after me soon, I’ll be surprised. Until I know for certain that I won’t wake up to a rogue vampire hovering over me, I won’t feel safe.”

“ _So, waking up to vampire you know hovering over you, that’s still okay?_ ” he said, half-joking.

“So long as it’s one with honey curls and golden eyes, who stands about 6’3” and has battle scar laden arms that I fit into just right, it’s more than okay.” I told him, and he chuckled.

“ _You do fit quite nicely in my arms. You’re a perfect fit if you ask my opinion._ ” he replied, and I leaned against the wall as I giggled again. “ _It’s probably not very decent or gentlemanly of me to form an opinion of your body this soon, so I do apologize if I have overstepped my bounds._ ”

“Other than my own, your opinion is the only one that matters for this.” I said, briefly thinking back to the vision I’d received on my last birthday. “Besides, you’re the only one who’s ever going to get to see it.”

“ _Now who sounds certain!_ ” he responded with a laugh, a full one that made me feel giddy just hearing it.

“I wasn’t kidding when I said I know you better than my own mind. I’ve seen every inch of you, Jasper, and I have this sneaking suspicion that you share about as well as I do.” I told him, and I heard his laugh fade into a chuckle.

“ _You’re not wrong, Alice, because I don’t share very well at all. At least, I’m not very good at sharing what’s most important to me._ ” he said, going quiet for a moment before sighing. “ _I’ve got to get home. Edward’s gone and ran his mouth to Rosalie, and she’s throwing a fit now, so we’re havin’ a family meeting._ ”

“I repeat what I said this morning, I can’t tell you which one’s actually the bigger drama queen.” I said, rolling my eyes. “I’ll see you later.”

“ _I’ll see you soon, Darlin’._ ” Jasper replied, and the call ended.

That night, I tried to push myself mentally to see what Maria was up to while I showered. The vision I had was brief, but I didn’t feel anymore safe afterwards than I had before I’d seen it. I turned the water off and dressed quickly before crossing the hall back into my room and grabbing my hair dryer. At the same time that I set it down a few minutes later, I heard my window open and turned to see Jasper pulling himself into my room and closing the window behind him. He leaned against the window as I sat down on the edge of the bed and drew my knees up to my chest.

“You’re anxious, and not the good kind. What’s wrong, Darlin’?” he asked, and I knew better than to attempt lying to him.

“I pushed myself to have a waking vision about Maria, just checking to see what she was planning, and I kinda wish I hadn’t done it.” I told him. “She’s sent one of her lackeys to find another vampire, a hunter called James, to track me down for her and make sure that there aren’t any other vampires in the area who she’ll have to deal with if she crossed into their territory.”

“Any idea how long it’ll take whoever she sent to find this James person?” Jasper asked me, and I shook my head.

“All I saw was Maria meeting with a female vampire, not a newborn but one that she still values and hasn’t had killed.” I said, a small giggle escaping my lips as a sudden thought crossed my mind. “Did you know that Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael weren’t here? You’re earlier than I’d expected.”

“Due to the treaty, Dad can’t go onto the reservation. Michael’s the closest doctor other than Dad, and Catherine has a soft spot for Billy Black’s son, Jacob, because of how young he was when he lost his mother. Everyone’s heard about what happened by now, and Dad says he thinks us moving back kicked off the stressors that led to Billy’s collapse today. I just hope that the man actually listens to the doctor this time and doesn’t let both of his daughters leaving home on the same day cause him to neglect his son.” he said, and I agreed.

“Aunt Catherine said that it was common knowledge that Rachel was leaving to return to school, but Rebecca and her husband leaving for Hawaii sorta blindsided everyone.” I said, pausing to think for a moment about the Black family. “With you guys being around, would Jacob Black potentially become a shapeshifter?”

“Jacob Black has the most likelihood of anyone in his tribe of becoming one. Both of his great-grandfathers were shapeshifters when Dad signed the treaty, and Billy’s grandfather was the chief at that time. There’s no way that kid isn’t a wolf.” Jasper said with a sardonic smile.

“He’s not only two years younger than me, but he’s also not my type, so don’t you go getting all territorial, Jasper Gabriel Whitlock.” I said, and he looked at me with an almost innocent grin.

“You’ve told me about your visions, and I have no reason to doubt you, so why would I ever even think of being jealous of a wolf?” he asked, but I rolled my eyes.

“Exactly my point.” I said as he sat down beside me. “You’re the only one for me, and no one else could ever be enough. I’ve known this since I was thirteen, and it became certain last year. I think I’ve waited long enough to find you, and you’ve definitely waited long enough to find me.”

“Alice…” he trailed off as I leaned in close, and our lips met in a soft, gentle kiss.

When we parted, I laid my head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around my waist and dropped a kiss onto my hair. I felt content, safe as we sat on the edge of the bed; I felt safe with Jasper, despite the ludicrous nature of our situation, and I knew that I could trust him with everything.

**While asleep that night, a vision took over my dreams. The girl I had seen in my vision on the plane the day before was back, and she was with a woman who could only have been her mother. They were standing together in front of a tri-panel mirror, and Bella was wearing a periwinkle dress with cream colored flats. Her mother was wearing a simple lace wedding gown with spaghetti straps and a beaded belt, and the pointed toes of her white high heels were just visible beneath the hemline of her dress.**

**“ _This is it Bella, a new start for us._ ” Bella’s mother said.**

**“ _Mom, you and Phil are going to have a new start. Nothing’s changing for you and me, not really._ ” Bella replied.**

**“ _You’re moving to the other side of the country from me, Bella, so there will be change. Are you sure you don’t want to go to Jacksonville with us?_ ” her mother asked, and Bella gave her a half-hearted smile.**

**“ _Mom, Charlie needs me more than you this time, and I know you know that. He’s all alone, and now his best friend is wheelchair bound on top of it. Ever since Grandma and Grandpa Swan died, he’s pretty much only had Billy Black and Sue Clearwater, and Sue’s married, so they don’t hang out much because, if they did, the tribe would talk._ ” Bella said, getting a confused look from her mother. “ _Although, despite the fact that Seth, Leah, and I all like being alive, the three of us agreed that Charlie and Sue should’ve been together back when Leah was ten, I was nine, and Seth was four._ ”**

**“ _How do you remember all of this stuff?_ ” her mother asked, and Bella shrugged.**

**“ _I listen, Mom, and I pay attention. It’s just like how I know that you really do want some time to live alone with Phil like you never got to do with Charlie._ ” Bella said, and her mother smiled softly at her.**

**“ _I love you, my Bella._ ” she said, and Bella smiled a real smile this time.**

**“ _I love you, too, Mom._ ” was her reply, and then the vision ended.**

Much like he’d told me on the phone the day before, Jasper was gone when I woke. Instead of him lying beside me, reading a book or talking quietly on his phone, I found a note and a single yellow rose on my dresser. He promised to find me in Port Angeles, and I felt giddy as I read the way he’d signed the note. _Always yours, Jasper_.

I smiled and hummed to myself as I got dressed, wondering to myself if Jasper had altered my emotions any before leaving. I decided that I didn’t care if he has as I made my way down to breakfast where I was surprised to find Lauren awake, dressed, and eating her cereal as if she’d always been an early riser. Like the previous morning, we didn’t talk to one another directly. As we all got in Aunt Catherine’s Toyota Sequoia, part of me wondered how long my cousin could keep the silent treatment up, but another part of me wasn’t really sure that I actually cared. I had told her what I’d seen, and whoever Jasper wanted to be with was ultimately Jasper’s decision. Of course, this line of thought didn’t stop me from being internally overjoyed that he did pick me. Sitting in the back seat as my aunt drove along the highway, I was determined to not let anything or anyone, especially Lauren, dampen my good mood.

My good mood didn’t last, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Shopping for school supplies had been easy enough, but clothes were another story. In Biloxi, I had done my own shopping as well as Cynthia’s for most of our lives, and I understood how to dress our body types. Lauren, no matter how much she wanted to be a model and no matter how much she insisted she knew the latest trends for girls our age, was entirely useless. Most of the things I picked out were, honestly, basic necessities for the wintry-spring in Forks like jackets, jeans, and sweaters. I picked out a couple of pairs of rather plain black boots as well, but my cousin kept trying to get me to try on the things that she liked by suggesting it to Aunt Catherine who, of course, thought that it was a great idea. I’ve always been smaller than other girls my age, standing at only 4’10” tall and having what was barely a C-cup, and my hips were more rounded than Lauren’s, but she insisted on having me try on several tops and dresses that cut my already small torso down to near-nothing as well as high-waisted jeans and shorts that did the same thing. I was teetering on the edge of pure rage and frustration when I felt a swift and sudden wave of calm wash over me. I brightened at this, smiling to myself as I changed back into the outfit that I’d put together for this shopping trip, as I knew that Jasper was near.

Stepping out of the fitting room and placing another round of Lauren’s selections on the discard rack, I turned to Aunt Catherine and told her that I was going to just stick with what I’d already picked out for the time being. She said that she understood, and I ignored Lauren’s annoyed expression as we walked to the registers. When we walked out of the day’s third clothing store, I asked if we could go to the arts & crafts store next. She agreed, and I spent at least fifteen minutes picking out the ideal sketch book, color pencils, and charcoal pencils before a familiar, soothing scent of honey and lavender washed over my olfactory receptors. Lauren was thankfully distracted by a selection of different colored yarns, and Cynthia was sorting through coloring books with Aunt Catherine, so none of them saw me slip over to where Jasper was standing.

“You kept me waiting long enough.” I teased him, and he let out a low chuckle before responding.

“My apologies, ma’am.” he said, and I giggled.

“This is starting to become something of a habit for you, isn’t it?” I joked, leaning in to his embrace as he wrapped his arms around me in a hug.

“Maybe, but it’s not entirely unfounded. I might’ve been able to meet up with you earlier if I hadn’t had to reassure my siblings that I’d be fine on my own for nearly an hour straight before I could even leave the house.” he told me, and I couldn’t wait to finally meet Jasper’s siblings.

“Any idea how you’re gonna spring me now?” I asked quietly, and he just shot me a smirk and inclined his head behind me, prompting me to glance over my shoulder to see Lauren glaring daggers in my direction as well as Aunt Catherine and Cynthia smiling.

“Jasper, what a coincidence running into you here!” my aunt said as she neared us, acting as though she hadn’t been eavesdropping on our call the previous day.

“Afternoon, Mrs. Mallory, Miss Cynthia.” Jasper greeted them. “My mom ordered some new stationary, on top of about four or five other things, that needed to be picked up today. Edward says he’s working on something and hasn’t left his piano since yesterday, and Emmett and Rosalie never come home with just what was on the list, so I drew the short straw.”

“I hope Alice wasn’t bothering you.” Lauren said as she joined us, but Jasper didn’t rise to her bait quite the way she’d hoped.

“Honestly, if Alice hadn’t walked over here first, I would’ve gone over to her once I’d picked up my mom’s order.” he said, his attention staying on me the whole time. “I was wondering if you might want to grab a cup of coffee or something, Alice.”

“I’d love to, Jasper.” I responded, acting as though I hadn’t been expecting him to ask, and my aunt chuckled.

“Just have her home by eleven, Jasper.” she said, taking my art supplied from my arms with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

As soon as Jasper accepted the box that made up Esme’s order, I hugged my aunt and sister good-bye. Lauren would only give me a glare, but I hadn’t been expecting much else. Jasper and I left the arts & crafts store, and he led me to a different car than the one he’d driven from the airport, a dark grey Bentley that looked practically brand new.

“So, coffee or no coffee?” Jasper asked as he opened my door for me.

“No coffee; I had a cup this morning, and that’s enough caffeine for me for a while.” I said with a light laugh.

“In that case, where do you want to go?” he asked, and I grinned.

“Wherever it was you were when you called me yesterday, I want to go there.” I told him, and he chuckled at my excitement as he started the car.

The little clearing along the river embankment Jasper took me to quickly became our spot; once I my daily schedule was clear, every afternoon since Wednesday in Port Angeles, we had made our way there without fail. It was secluded enough that the following Saturday, three days after Aunt Catherine had come home to custody paperwork in the mailbox and one day after she and Uncle Michael registered Cynthia and me for school, Jasper was comfortable enough to remove his jacket while he and I sat together playing 20 Questions; his scars were on full display, and I was fairly certain that he recognized how happy it made me for him to trust me enough to not hide himself away.

“Okay, my turn again.” Jasper said as we reached question number seventeen. “What was the last song you sang to yourself?”

“Let’s see…Oh, it was ‘Born to Fly,’ by Sara Evans!” I answered. “Aunt Catherine was playing the CD last night while we did the dishes, and it was still stuck in my head when I showered. I changed the lyric about a blue-eyed boy to a green-eyed boy, though.”

“Oh?” Jasper teased, and I nodded.

“You had beautiful eyes as a human, but the gold suits you all the same.” I said, pausing to think of my own seventeenth question. “What’s you favorite song? I know it’s lame, but it’s one that I want to know.”

“My favorite song changes all the time, so I mostly just do favorite songs of each decade or so. Right now, though, the song I’ve listened to the most has probably been ‘How Do I Live,’ mostly the Trisha Yearwood version. Though he’ll deny it if ever asked, Emmett loves _Con Air_ , and he decided to watch it the other night.” Jasper told me, but I sensed that there was more to his obsession with the song than just his brother’s choice in movies.

“I think that’s very sweet.” I told him, and he looked down bashfully upon realizing that he’d been caught.

“It’s also true as far as I’m concerned. I haven’t even known you a full week, Darlin’, and I don’t think I can ever go back to the way things were before you walked into my life.” he said, taking my right hand in his left and intertwining our fingers.

“You’ll never have to, I promise.” I told him, and he brought my hand to his lips before asking his next question.

“What’s your least favorite subject in school?” he asked, and I sighed.

“If I never had to take another history class, I’d be fine.” I admitted, and Jasper chuckled.

“I also hate history, but it’s probably not for the same reason as you, Darlin’.” he said, and I raised an eyebrow at him.

“I know I hate it because every history teacher I’ve ever had makes it all sound so one-dimensional. There’s never just one flat reason for anything in history, and it’s never a clear-cut Good Guys and Bad Guys scenario, but we’re just supposed to accept that it’s the way the book tells it.” I said, and he laughed happily. “Why do you hate history so much?”

“Okay, so maybe it is pretty much the same reason. It’s also, for me, the fact that most high school history textbooks get so much wrong. Not even speaking as someone who lived through most of what’s in these books, but just as someone whose written more than one doctoral thesis on various parts of history, so much of American history is watered down so that you can supposedly learn over two centuries worth of material, more if it’s a world history book, in eighteen to thirty-six weeks. It’s damn near impossible to find a decent textbook not on a college level.” Jasper said, and I was thrilled to see him so passionate about the subject.

“I’m counting that as my eighteenth question, so we’re back to you.” I pointed out, and he gave me a quick nod before asking his nineteenth question.

“Okay, out of all my adoptive family members that you’ve seen in your visions, who are you most eager to meet?” he asked, and I thought about my answer for a minute.

“Honestly, it would have to be Carlisle.” I told him. “I mean, I really want to meet Esme, too, but I had a mother who loved me, so I know what that’s like; but a father that loves me?”

“I swear to you right now, Alice, that I won’t be manipulating my parents’ emotions when they meet you, but I can guarantee that they will both love you from the second you walk into the room.” Jasper said, and I knew that he was probably right given the visions of my own future that I’d had.

“Okay, so it’s my turn again-” I started to say, but Jasper cut me off and put a finger to his lips.

“Who’s there?” he called, pulling me into his lap seconds before an impossibly large, black wolf burst through the line of trees across the river soared across the rushing water in what appeared to be pure panic.

“Can you calm him down?” I asked Jasper, and he gave me a nod before focusing on the wolf.

The wolf didn’t try to attack us. Instead, he sat down on his side of the river and watched. Jasper continued sending out waves of calm towards the wolf, and the black fur covering the wolf’s body began fading away the calmer he got. Once he was fully back to his human form, the shapeshifter looked up at us and went wide-eyed. He wore no clothes, so Jasper, despite the danger he knew the situation presented to his own health, took the blanket we’d been sitting on and jumped across the river to offer it to the young Quileute man. The offer was accepted, and Jasper jumped back across the river before any verbal response could be given. The young man wrapped himself in the blanket and ran off back into the woods.

“Question nineteen for you from me, are you going to get in trouble for that?” I asked worriedly, and I felt the wave of calm Jasper aimed at me before responding.

“With as panicked as he felt, I doubt he’ll say anything. Edward might think it was reckless, and my parents will probably agree, but they’ll also agree that offering one of the wolves aid instead of attacking him will go a lot further in convincing the wolves that we’re not their enemy.” he said, wrapping his arms around me as I stepped back into his embrace.

“What else was he feeling? It’s not a question for the game, Jasper, I just need to know.” I asked, and he held me tight as he responded.

“He’s done something he’s ashamed of, but he was also worried, angry at himself, and scared.” he said, and I pushed up on my toes to press a kiss to his lips.

“I think you did a very good thing in helping him.” I told him softly.

“You know, we still have one question each.” he said after a moment passed.

“You first.” I said, and he chuckled.

“Alright, alright.” he told me while forming the question. “How about this one: would you like to go to the movies with me this coming Friday?”

“I’d love to, I was waiting for you to ask, and we’re going to be watching _Ice Princess_.” I told him matter-of-factly, and he chuckled.

“Was that the vision you didn’t want to tell me about when you woke up?” he asked, and I nodded.

“I didn’t want to influence your questions. Now, it’s my turn.” I said, looking up at him and holding his gaze as I spoke. “What was your honest first impression of me?”

He didn’t answer straight away. Jasper sent feelings as his first form of response, however, and I figured that this was the easiest way for him to communicate his thoughts. Emotions hit me one right after the other, and I tried to keep myself steady in the face of his curiosity, anger, concern, and caring being thrown at me. Then, the emotions shifted towards surprise, admiration, and affection. Finally, a feeling that was all-encompassing, overwhelming, and bright overtook me.

“That very first day, almost a week ago now, I didn’t know what to make of you, Alice.” came his response once the emotions had died down. “You feel things more acutely than anyone I’ve ever met, and the enormity of your emotions in the train station was enough to draw me to you. Then, I overheard your phone call; you just looked so innocent and small, Cynthia even more so, and I couldn’t understand what kind of person would go out of his way to hurt you. I followed you to the airport out of both personal necessity and curiosity, but I wasn’t anticipating getting so close as to physically bump into you when I made the choice to follow you. You greeted me by my name, my actual name, and then told me your story. How anyone could go through the things that you have and still have so much hope amazes me, and that’s what you made me feel by the time I dropped you off at your aunt and uncle’s house that night. You, Mary-Alice, gave me back a sense of hope that I haven’t felt in over a century. You’ve given me back something that no one, not even my parents who should both qualify as saints by now, could ever give me, Darlin’, because you gave me back myself because that’s all you expect me to be.”

“You are a complete and utter sap when you want to be, Jasper Whitlock, and I love you all the more for it.” I said, blinking tears from my eyes before kissing him again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just in case you missed it, the last section of the chapter is the day that Sam clawed Emily's face and ran away. Now that he's been helped by a Cold-One, what effect might this have on the future of the relationship between the Olympic Coven and the Pack? Stay tuned to find out!


	4. Truce Reaffirmed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "In a way I know my heart is waking up/As all the walls come tumbling down/Closer than I've ever felt before/And I know, and you know/There's no need for words right now..."  
> -"Breathe," by Faith Hill

There were two things I was immediately grateful for when my aunt dropped me and Lauren off at Forks High School bright and early Monday morning. First, the elementary school where Cynthia would start attending an hour after the high school’s first bell rang was directly behind the high school. Second, the red BMW M3 in which Rosalie usually drove herself, Emmett, Edward, and Jasper to school was not yet in the parking lot when I stepped into the front office. Mrs. Cope, the rather pleasant older woman at the reception desk, got my name and stepped away to find my file. While she was out of sight, I took out the new cellphone my aunt and uncle had gotten me. I sent a quick text to Jasper, tucked the phone back into my small purse, and smiled brightly at Mrs. Cope as she returned. I thanked her as I accepted my schedule and the yellow slip that all of my teachers would have to sign, and I walked out of the office with my eyes flitting between my schedule and a hand-drawn map of the school. I barely spared a glance upward at first, concentrating on finding my first classroom, but then I heard my name being called. I looked around, and my eyes fell on Lauren waving me over to where her friends had gathered. Resigning myself to the fact that, until Jasper arrived, my cousin and her friends were my best form of help, I walked over and greeted both her and Jessica, who I’d met when she’d joined us for dinner on Friday.

“Good morning, Alice! Oh, you’ve already got your schedule! Great!” Jessica greeted enthusiastically, and I smiled politely before returning her greeting. “These guys are mine and Lauren’s friends: Mike Newton, Tyler Crowley, Eric Yorkie, Jennifer Ford, Katie Marshall, and Angela Weber.”

I greeted each of them, though I noted that Angela was the only one who wasn’t staring at me creepily. She seemed nice enough, and I hoped that at least she and I would become friends before Bella arrived the following school year. The group started talking about a beach trip that they were planning, one they apparently took every year, and I listened for the most part. After a few more minutes passed by, I saw Mike look up and groan.

“Emo kid’s headed our way. I don’t see the others with him; kind of a disappointment really.” Mike said, and I whipped around to see Jasper walking down the hall. “Shame, really. The sister’s the hottest of the bunch.”

“Of course, you’d say that. None of you guys get Edward’s appeal anyway.” Jessica responded. “Though, this one does have some appeal, too.”

“Why do you girls get so into the dark, mysterious type?” Eric asked. “Alice, as an objective newcomer, can you explain this?”

“I wouldn’t exactly call Alice objective.” Lauren grumbled, and I giggled as Jasper smiled at me.

I felt my face split into a wide, Cheshire cat grin as I hurried over to him. Jasper wasted no time in pulling me into his arms, and I rested my head against his chest with my chin angled upward enough for him to place a quick peck on my lips. I’d seen him less than three hours earlier, but his physical presence in my life after years of only seeing him in visions was quickly becoming addictive.

“I was trying to wait for you, but Lauren saw me when I walked out of the office and called me over so I could meet hers and Jessica’s friends.” I told him quietly, and he nodded.

“It’s alright, Darlin’, because I was afraid that I’d miss seeing you before class since Rosalie and Edward wanted to fight again when I got home.” he replied, and I rolled my eyes.

“I think I should be friends with Angela.” I said as we began walking back towards the group. “Opinion?”

“She’s always genuine, and Edward likes to think that they could be friends if we weren’t, well, Cold-Ones as the wolves would call us.” Jasper said, affirming what I’d been thinking.

“I feel that she’s going to be important, and maybe I’ll get a vision concerning her soon. Plus, it’d be nice to have at least one female friend before Bella moves here next year.” I said, and he agreed with me, but he couldn’t respond because we reached the group seconds after I finished my statement.

“You two know each other?” Jessica asked, feigning surprise since I knew that Lauren had already told her.

“We met my first day in Forks.” I replied, not wanting to give her any more detail than necessary while also wanting to end the conversation as quickly as it had started once I noticed the way that Jasper had tensed. “Jasper, think you can help me find my way around here?”

“Of course.” he said, realizing what I was doing. “Where’s your first class?”

My first class of the day was art, and it didn’t take long to find the classroom. It was thankfully empty, so Jasper was finally able to relax a bit. I hugged him as tightly as my small arms would allow, and he hugged me back gently. At least one if not all three of his siblings had walked into the building while we’d been with Lauren’s group, and their combined thirst had hit him instantly. I felt my anger grow, but then it was tempered ever so subtly that I almost didn’t look up to see the pair of pleading gold eyes staring down at me.

“Darlin’, they’re not worth you getting’ this angry.” Jasper told me quietly, but I huffed.

“I know they’re your siblings, but damn it, Jasper, you told them what I told you. They know that you can feel their thirst, and I’m nowhere near stupid enough to believe that Edward hasn’t been locked on my thoughts since the second I was within range. They want you to hurt me, or someone else, just so they can make their totally invalid point.” I told him, doing my best to not shout or even raise my voice above a gentle whisper.

“I know what they want, and I’m doin’ my level best to not let them have it. But, if there’s one thing I’m sure that I’ll never do, I can promise you right now that I’ll never hurt you, Alice, so please don’t let your anger at my dumbass siblings take over your other emotions.” he said, and I remembered what he’d told me Saturday during Twenty Questions.

“I feel things more intensely than other humans. If I get angry, you get angry. If you get angry, everyone gets angry.” I said, still keeping quiet, and he chuckled.

“Yes, and then there’s also the fact that I don’t like seeing you upset in general. My asshat little brother shouldn’t be causing you stress and worry, and neither should my bitchy sister. Emmett says he wants to stay out of it all, and he likes the fact that you’re actually able to surprise me when he can never do it.” Jasper said, and I smiled pridefully.

“I’m the only one you actively let your guard down with, the only one you’ve never really been able to fear judging you, so of course I can surprise you.” I said, brushing my fingers across the one scar visible near his collar. “Would it be weird if Carlisle or Esme bit you there? You shouldn’t have to feel different or guilty because that she-demon was the one who sired you.”

“How do you know my feelings so well when I’m the empath?” Jasper asked in reply. “As for the sire’s mark, either of them would be happy to do it. My parents never seemed to be the angry or grudge-holding type until Maria found us in Calgary.”

“I hate her for that, and I have many other reasons to hate her that should rank higher on the list but don’t.” I said, and he raised an eyebrow at me.

“What about what happened to your mama?” he asked, and I gave him a sad smile.

“Jasper, I will always miss my mama; however, I’d have lost her even if Maria hadn’t shown up because I’ve always been destined to be yours. I told you last week that you will be the death of me, but that’s only the start of our eternity together.” I explained, wrapping my arms around him and snuggling as close to his chest as I could physically get.

The bell rang shortly thereafter, and Jasper pecked me on the lips one last time before leaving for his class. As my new classmates filed into the room, I was happy to see that Angela was among them. She smiled at me and sat down on my left, and I was glad that I’d be able to make a friend so soon after all. Angela turned out to be an excellent source of information, a much more reliable one than Lauren or Jessica had been, and I was excited as she willingly broke down the social hierarchy of Forks High School from the prospective of an average teenager rather than a vampire.

“Mike moved here when he was ten, and Jessica moved here when she was eight. Lauren will never admit this out loud, but she became friends with them at first for two reasons each. First thing, until the Cullens came to town, Mike’s family was the richest one around here. The Newton’s have a series of small sports equipment stores, and they decided that Forks was the ideal place to open their third or fourth store, so here they are; Jessica, on the other hand, while never exactly rich, showed up as the most malleable piece of flesh that Lauren could mold into her perfect best friend. Second for both of them, they were the most exotic thing Lauren had seen around here until the Cullens, whom I’m sure need no introduction from me.” she said, her tone slightly teasing rather than shocked or condescending like the others’ had been.

“I haven’t actually met any of them aside from Jasper, but I know that Rosalie doesn’t like me, and Edward’s unsure of me. Jasper says that Emmett’s curious, but that’s about it.” I admitted.

“To be fair, we aren’t sure that Rosalie likes much of anybody aside from Emmett and her siblings. As far as Edward goes, Jessica’s had a thing for him since they got here last year, but he doesn’t feel the same way about her. He seems more of a quiet-type, and Jess is very loud…and brash. Because she wasn’t born here, she thinks that she’s naturally more cosmopolitan and better suited for Edward than anyone else in the world.” she said, rolling her eyes as she spoke of Jessica.

We laughed together quietly as we worked on the assigned project, and Angela asked me about my life before Forks. She didn’t pry too deeply, stopping before any one subject got too deep or emotional, and I could see that she was making more of an effort than I’d have expected from Lauren’s friends. Part of me wished that there was a way I could keep her as a friend after I would inevitably become a vampire.

Jessica, Mike, and the rest of Lauren’s group had been exactly as I’d thought they would be. I had classes with them throughout the day, and each of them wanted to know what I knew about the Cullens, and the guys were fairly interested in my relationship with Jasper no matter how many times I told them to drop the topic. By the time lunch rolled around, I could feel my frustration and anxiety levels increasing, so I knew that Jasper could feel them too. Relief flooded me, no doubt it was not just my own, when I walked out of my French class to find Jasper leaned against the wall across from me. He held my hand as we walked towards the cafeteria, and I giggled as he released waves of affection aimed solely at me.

“I missed you, too.” I said quietly, and he squeezed my hand lightly instead of verbally responding.

We walked into the cafeteria, hands still clasped together, and it was then my turn to squeeze Jasper’s hand even if he couldn’t necessarily feel it as much as I could. He’d tensed the second we were in the same room as the other three vampires, and I leaned against his side as he guided me over to a table away from his siblings. Glancing over at them, I caught their expressions. Rosalie was fuming, obviously not having anticipated her brother breaking away from them. Emmett looked ready to laugh, the reflexive smile and crinkling of his brow ridge giving him away. Edward, looking directly at me, looked annoyed at my very existence. Knowing that he had to be inside my mind still, I began a mental loop of “it’s a small world” until he looked away. I heard Jasper chuckle as Edward did so, and I turned to him with an innocent smile.

“Yes?” I asked, and he shook his head at me.

“Whatever you just did to Edward, his more annoyed now than he was already.” he said, and I laughed.

“I’m from a family of psychics; I have excellent mental defenses, and I can do this all day.” I said just as much to Edward as I did to Jasper.

When Aunt Catherine picked me, Lauren, and Cynthia up from school that afternoon, I could see from her expression that something was different. She waited until we were home before asking the three of us to sit down at the kitchen table for a minute. She had some news, she told us, but it wasn’t anything bad.

“We’re having some company over for dinner tonight.” she said. “Sam Uley is going through a rough time right now, and he’s staying with Chief Swan for a couple of weeks. Now, it’s not exactly a secret that the only thing Charlie can cook is steaks with baked potatoes, so I asked them to join us with the hope that you girls might be able to provide a pleasant atmosphere that might help Sam adjust. His girlfriend, Emily, is in the hospital, and though she’ll be fine, it’s going to be a long road to recovery. Poor thing was mauled by a bear or something in the woods on Saturday.”

I gasped internally, the realization that this Emily person had not been mauled by a bear hitting me rather quickly. If there had been a bear attack on Saturday, with as keen as vampire senses were, Jasper would have been able to smell it. If the scent of blood had been masked by the scent of a shapeshifting wolf, however, it would’ve gone entirely unnoticed. I would have to wait until our dinner guests arrived to make sure, but I was almost certain that Sam Uley had been the wolf Jasper had managed to calm down that day.

“Chief Swan’s house only has two bedrooms. Isn’t his daughter supposed to be visiting for her spring break or whatever?” Lauren asked, and my aunt sighed.

“Lauren, not only has Bella actively avoided Forks since she was twelve, but she’s also visiting a friend of hers in New Orleans over her break instead.” Aunt Catherine said, and I put the pieces together at that point to figure out that my future best friend Bella would have to be Bella Swan if she was planning to move in with her father, Charlie Swan, the next year.

“How do you know what Chief Swan’s house is like, Lauren?” Cynthia asked, and I choked back a laugh as my cousin sighed before answering.

“When Mom and Dad went to Portland for one of Dad’s conferences last year, I stayed with Chief Swan because Mom didn’t want me here by myself and Jessica was at her grandmother’s funeral.” she explained.

“Oh, okay.” Cynthia said, and Aunt Catherine dismissed us, so she skipped up the stairs to get started on her homework.

“Mom, how is Emily really doing? Dad left when he got Mrs. Clearwater’s call Saturday, and I’ve seen him twice since then.” Lauren asked once Cynthia was out of the room.

“Honestly, the girl’s lucky that she was found so fast. If Jared and Paul had been any later, she might not have made it. Sam’s been beside himself this whole time, with what he found out about Embry being his half-brother on top of dealing with Leah’s anger, so getting of the rez for a while is probably a good thing for him.” Aunt Catherine said, pausing for a moment and lowering her voice to just above a whisper. “I’m also not sure that what attacked Emily was really a bear, but Sue was insistent.”

“Have you seen something?” Lauren asked, and I nodded along curiously.

“Have you?” I added.

“I’m not sure what to make of it, but I’ve had this reoccurring dream lately. There’s a blue-roan wolf and a red mountain lion caught in a fight, and all I can do is watch. I can’t even move because every time I try, the wolf growls at me to stay back. The mountain lion gets the upper hand, and then more wolves show up to help the blue wolf. More mountain lions jump into the fray, and then a second pride of mountain lions, all golden in color, arrive to help the wolves. One of them, a female with a dark brown undertone to her fur, pins the original red mountain lion to the ground and rips out her throat. Then, I wake up and it’s over until the next time I go to sleep.” Aunt Catherine told us.

“So, Emily was attacked by either a wolf or a mountain lion?” Lauren asked, and I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from responding.

“I can’t say for sure, but there’s a chance that the animals merely represent something deeper that I’m just not capable of fully understanding yet.” Aunt Catherine said, and I excused myself to do my homework once she’s gone quiet again.

It didn’t take me long to do my homework, so I sent a text to Jasper to warn him about Sam being invited over for dinner. Two minutes later, I heard my window slide open and closed as Jasper slipped into my room. I reached over and turned up the volume on the stereo system Aunt Catherine had put in my room a few days earlier. The sounds of Faith Hill filled the room, acting as a helpful aid in hiding the fact that my vampire boyfriend had just entered the house through my second story window.

“I’m going to be fine.” I said, linking my hands together with my palms against the back of his neck.

“I know you will be, I have full faith in you and your visions, but I still have issues trusting a wolf.” he told me, placing his hands securely on my hips. “What if he doesn’t recognize you from the other day? What if he picks up my scent and goes berserk?”

“Honey, listen to me. Everything is going to be fine. Everything I know, every vision I’ve had tells me that we’re going to be fine.” I told him softly as he looked directly into my eyes. “I fully understand that you don’t handle your own panic very well, so I want you to do two things for me.”

“Anything.” he said, and I smiled up at him.

“First, focus on my emotions because they’re a lot more positive than yours right now, I’m sure of it.” he nodded at my first demand.

“Very calm, and very affectionate.” he noted, chuckling at me. “And very sure of yourself.”

“Which brings me to my second thing: kiss me.” I told him, and he smiled as our lips met for a kiss much longer than the pecks on the lips that I’d gotten from him earlier in the day.

As if it were a moment from some cheesy romantic comedy, I heard the chorus of the song playing from the stereo as our lips met and laughed internally at how perfect it made this moment. The happiness I felt was mirrored by Jasper, and everything felt amplified by a hundred percent. I’m sure that I could’ve burst with excitement right then and there if he hadn’t been keeping both our emotions from becoming too extreme. The chorus repeated itself again, and I couldn’t help but project all of my love for Jasper directly at him.

“It's the way you love me/It's a feeling like this/It's centrifugal motion/It's perpetual bliss/It's that pivotal moment/It's impossible/This kiss, this kiss (Unsinkable)/This kiss, this kiss…” and I couldn’t help but believe in every word Faith Hill sang in that moment as Jasper reflected my love for him perfectly in his own love for me.

Jasper ducked back out the window when we heard the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. A quick check in the mirror was enough for me to change out of my rumpled outfit and into an outfit that wouldn’t put a neon “I was Making Out with My Vampire Boyfriend” sign over my head. A fresh pair of jeans matched with a black tank top and two-toned black-and-bronze flats later, I found myself downstairs with my aunt, cousin, and little sister as my uncle led two men through the front door. The first was about average height with dark hair, pale skin, and brown eyes that showed just how much he cared with ease. The second was definitely the wolf Jasper and I had encountered two days prior, and he recognized me as well. His eyes went wide when he saw me, and I watched the way his head swiveled around once he’d caught Jasper’s scent.

“Charlie, Sam, meet mine and Cathy’s nieces, Alice and Cynthia.” my uncle introduced us. “Girls, meet Charlie Swan, the chief of police, and Sam Uley.”

We briefly exchanged pleasantries with Chief Swan, and my sister greeted Sam with a sweet smile. Aunt Catherine led us all into the formal dining room, a room which I knew she rarely used when it was just family in the house, where dinner was laid out along the table. The adults, minus Sam, did the usual small talk to start off the night, and Uncle Michael asked after Bella.

“She’s doing great.” Chief Swan said, his whole face lighting up as he spoke of his only daughter. “Renee told me that she’s visiting her friend Maddie in New Orleans for the week, and she loves going to Maddie’s grandmother’s place because the woman apparently has every book on fairy tales, supernatural creatures, and mythology ever written.”

“I remember when Bella and Lauren were little and would go looking for fairy circles in the woods!” Aunt Catherine said fondly.

“Mom, we were kids, and kids do that kind of stuff.” Lauren said, as if somehow the actions of her child-self reflected poorly on the person she’s become as a teenager.

“I thought it was adorable, sweetheart.” my aunt responded before turning back to Chief Swan. “What’s she into these days? Ghosts?”

“Vampires, actually. It’s strange, I know, but who am I to disparage her interests so long as she’s not doing anything illegal.” he answered, and I fought back a smile while Sam, seated across from me, scowled.

Dinner continued on pleasantly, and Chief Swan asked both Cynthia and me to call him by his first name when he assured us that his door would always be open if one or both of us needed to talk. While the adults, again not including Sam, moved into the kitchen for coffee after dinner, Sam followed me outside with Cynthia; he was eager to ask me about Saturday, and I hoped that he wouldn’t completely lose his cool once I explained things to him. Before either of us could speak, however, Sam tensed and looked towards the tree line. Jasper stepped out from in between the conifers, and I smiled as he darted over to us. Cynthia gave him a hug before taking her new constellations book out into the yard to stargaze while the three of us talked.

“Sam, seeing as how we helped you the other day, could you please not lash out at my boyfriend, especially when we’re not in your territory?” I asked in a quiet voice before wrapping my arms around Jasper’s torso and pushing myself up to peck him on the lips.

“I wasn’t going to, at least not on purpose. The treaty exists for a reason, I guess, and I actually would like to thank both of you.” Sam said, and we were both surprised by this. “You didn’t have to help me, calm me down however you managed it, but you did. So, thanks.”

“You’re very welcome, Sam, and I don’t think Emily is going to hold this against you so long as you explain the wolf thing to her. From what I’ve heard about your tribe’s relationship with the wolf, you wouldn’t be with Emily if she wasn’t going to be strong enough to stand beside you no matter what.” I said, and Sam smiled down at the ground at my words.

“I honestly wish that everyone could feel the way about someone that I feel about Emily.” he said, and I laughed lightly in agreement.

“When you finally find that special someone, there’s nothing else like it.” I said, snuggling in to Jasper’s side again. “Right, honey?”

“Absolutely, Darlin’.” Jasper responded, a warm brush of love and affection sweeping across me.

“Do vampires…” Sam trailed off, clearly unsure how to phrase the question.

“In our own way, yes.” Jasper explained. “A vampire may have many partners, but there is typically a time in one’s immortal life when they find their mate. The pull between you is like nothing you’ve ever felt before, and you would do anything to keep them safe. They become your very reason for existing. As for Alice and me in particular, I’m pathokinetic. I can feel and manipulate the emotions of the people around me, which was how I was able to calm you down on Saturday, so I can feel everything that she feels for me; at the same time, I can reflect my own feelings for her back at her so that she understands what I’m feeling. That intense love, that desire to do only that which makes her entirely and irrevocably happy, is a feeling I’ve come to know very well over the last week Alice has been in my life.”

“So, does this mean that you guys are definitely not killing each other?” I asked hopefully, and, to my delight, both of them chuckled.

“As long as no one gets bitten, I don’t think we’ll have any problems.” Sam said, and Jasper nodded.

“Well, as there are no plans to bite anyone anytime soon, I believe that can be arranged.” he replied, and I let out a relieved sigh.

“I’ll have to be injected with a syringe to the heart anyway, so there’s a bit of a loophole for me.” I said, and both of them gave me strange looks.

“What?” Sam asked, clearly confused.

“Context for information from your visions, Darlin’, please.” Jasper said, more amused than anything.

“Sam, all you need to know is that I’m psychic, most of the women my family, like my mother and Aunt Catherine, are psychic to some degree, and I’ve seen my own death, or undeath if you will. Within the year, the Cullens will adopt me; sometime after I graduate high school, something is going to happen that will result in me nearly dying. The only way to stop this is for me to become a vampire, and that’s exactly what’s going to happen. Simply because I know that vampires exist, I don’t have a choice unless I’d rather die, which I wouldn’t, because the current leaders of the vampire world, the Volturi, prefer that vampires remain a secret. They kill anyone who they see as a threat.” I explained, and Jasper understood that we’d discuss the matter in more depth once we were alone.

“Chances are, Aro would rather turn you himself and collect you as a member of the Volturi guard with your gifts.” he said, and Sam got a concerned expression on his face.

“There’s a vampire who collects vampires with special powers. Did he steal his whole gimmick from the _Guardians of the Galaxy_ comics?” he asked us, and I giggled while Jasper shrugged.

“Knowing Aro, he could’ve been the inspiration for the Collector all along. Having so many high-powered henchmen eager to please him helps him and his co-rulers keep vampires on a very tight leash. Edward and I are only safe because our dad is Aro’s only real friend.” Jasper said, a snort of hollow laughter accompanying his words.

“For now, we’re cool. You helped me even when you had no way of knowing that I wouldn’t attack you. I am grateful for that, and I don’t see a reason why my people should show your family any hostility so long as the terms of the treaty are met. Agreed?” Sam said, and Jasper gave him a nod.

“Agreed.” he said with a grin.

I got Sam’s number in case of an emergency along with Charlie’s before they left, though I hoped that I’d never have to use them for such a reason. I left my window unlocked for Jasper’s use when I went to bed that night, hoping that he’d return at some point. As I got into bed, I decided to draw a quick sketch. I don’t sketch the way most artists do most of the time. When I sketch a new picture, I start by positioning my pencil over the page and close my eyes. I focus on the future, and I sketch whatever it is I’m seeing in my vision as it comes to me; out of instinct, I switch pencils as needed if one broke, and I always add the color as soon as possible, though it’s not always when I first draw the sketch. This instance saw me sketching a scene that made me feel both sick to my stomach and empowered at the same time. The image I’d produced was of me standing between Maria and two children: the first was a small boy with dark curls and green eyes, and the second was an equally small girl with blonde curls and the same green eyes as the little boy. I had my arms thrown back behind me to protect the boy and girl, and Maria stood in front of me with her teeth bared. She wasn’t dressed in the high-end finery she usually wore around Richard, clothed instead in an old, off-white lace dress with a familiar grey, military coat over top. I knew that coat, and I knew it well. After the number of times I had seen that coat in my visions before, I’d be hard pressed to not recognize it. That coat was part of Jasper’s uniform from his time in the Texas Cavalry, and it was the one thing of his that Maria had managed to keep when he’d run away with Peter and Charlotte somewhere in the neighborhood of eighty years earlier.

Knowing what I knew about my transformation into a vampire, I was sure of who the two children were and why Maria would try going after them. I felt the tears, white-hot and angry, pool in my eyes the longer I looked at what I’d drawn, and I set the sketchpad to the side before any tears could fall and smear the image. If I didn’t manage to kill her before then, I was certain in that moment that I would kill Maria when my vision came true. Letting her either hurt or take those two children was not an option, and I was still shaking in anger while repeating this to myself internally when my window slid open. I felt the waves of calm before I felt Jasper sit down beside me. When I finally looked over at him, he had my sketchpad in his hands. He gazed at the image in confusion, his brow furrowed. I blinked away my tears and waited for him to speak.

“Who are they?” he asked.

“They’re how I die.” I answered truthfully, but I was happy to admit it.

“I thought that I…” Jasper trailed off, his head tilting as he continued looking at the sketch, and I gigged at the adorable sight.

“Jasper, they’re ours, our son and daughter.” I explained, smiling softly at him as he turned to face me. “The events leading to my death and rebirth start with you getting me pregnant.”

He was quiet, his eyes focused in even more on the drawing. When he started pushing an emotion at me, I felt my own relief and giddiness mixing with his joy. My answer clearly hadn’t been what Jasper had been expecting; if anything, it seemed like an impossibility until that moment for him. Now, after seeing even this simple of a sketch, he was excited by this new found possibility.

“I’m-I’m gonna be a daddy?” he asked me, and I nodded.

“I’ve known about them for a year, so I’ve done a bit of research to figure out how it all works. Our children, and any others like them that are out there, are a part of a supernatural race known as Dhampir; they’re half-vampire and half-human, and they used to be revered as quasi-divine beings in the Balkans when they would be sent to deal with rogue or ill-behaved vampires. They have all of your strength, but they can live amongst humans with very little need to hide. They sleep, eat human food, and function like any other human while also being fully capable of living solely off blood and not aging once they reach maturity. Something wiped them out in the Balkans over a thousand years ago, so that’s where most of my research ends. What I do know after that is that we are going to have a set of beautiful fraternal twins who we are going to love more than we’ve ever loved anyone or thing.” I told him, my words spilling out rapidly but in a soft tone.

Jasper closed the sketchpad and set it on my desk before sitting back down on the bed and pulling me close. He kissed me deeply, pure happiness radiating off him in waves. When we broke apart, he continued to hold me, something I was all too happy to let him do. I ended up falling asleep in his arms that night, and it was the best night’s sleep I’d had to that point.

Tuesday was similar to Monday at school. I continued to make friends with Angela while keeping the rest of Lauren’s friends at arm’s length. Jasper and I sat across the cafeteria from his siblings, and two of the three continued to make their brother aware exactly how much they disliked my presence in his life. Wednesday, however, was slightly different. For one, it was St. Patrick’s Day that particular Thursday and, even though I didn’t agree with the traditional meaning behind the holiday, I knew I had to wear something green. Searching my closet, I ended up wearing a simple, emerald green sundress paired with a black blazer and matching black, T-strap wedges. I kept my makeup minimal, as well as my jewelry, and finished the look off with a plain emerald green headband that contrasted nicely against my short, black hair. When Jasper arrived at school wearing an emerald sweater over a black t-shirt with black jeans and green and black sneakers, I giggled at how we were perfectly color coordinated.

“You look beautiful, Darlin’.” he told me during lunch when I asked if there was something wrong with my outfit upon realizing how many looks the others were giving me. “You’re still new to most of them, and there’s nothin’ that most teenage boys like to look at more than a beautiful woman.”

“Thank you, honey.” I replied, but my good mood was ended as quickly as it had began with the sound of the cafeteria’s side door slamming shut behind a rather furious looking Rosalie with a borderline ambivalent Emmett following her, glancing back at Jasper every few seconds until he was outside with his wife. “What did I do now?”

“You didn’t, trust me.” Jasper said, his eyes flickering over to where Edward sat alone at the vampires’ usual table. “That one is all on me and Edward.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” I asked, and he lowered his voice now that we were getting some additional looks, from Lauren’s table in particular.

“I had a passing thought about those two beautiful babies of ours that you’ve predicted we’d have, and Edward caught it. He, in a right state of shock, opened his big mouth in front of our sister knowing that a child of her own is the one thing that she wants but can never have.” he said, and I took my sketchpad from my backpack as a sudden realization dawned on me.

Flipping through pages, I stopped on one I’d done Tuesday evening before dinner. The drawing showed Rosalie, Emmett, and a girl no older than sixteen. The girl was smiling, and her left hand sat on top of Rosalie’s which was resting delicately on the girl’s shoulder. Emmett had his left arm around his wife, and his right arm was looped around the girl’s torso. They were all dressed in formal wear, both Rosalie and the girl wearing purple dresses while Emmett wore a tux with a purple vest, and Rosalie and Emmett were wearing their wedding rings. They looked like a happy and whole family unit, and I’d written down the name that I’d heard in association with the girl during the vision that had produced the image along the bottom of the page: Bree.

“Do you know this girl?” I asked Jasper as I handed him the sketchpad, but he shook his head.

“I can’t say that I’ve ever seen this girl before in my life. Is her name Bree?” he responded, and I gave a nod.

“In the vision, Emmett was telling her that it was only going to be a few more hours before she could change back into more casual clothes and go hunting with him. Rosalie praised her for doing as well as she was at whatever the event was, and Bree called them ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’ when she spoke to them. While it might not be having a baby of their own, I’m certain that the two of them shouldn’t give up the chance at being parents just yet.” I explained, jumping slightly as I heard the other chair at our table slide out as Edward joined us.

“Sorry if I scared you, Alice.” he said quietly before turning to Jasper. “And I’m sorry for what I did to you, Jazz.”

“It’s alright, Edward, I’ve got to do a better job at being aware of my surroundings.” I said.

“And I’ll forgive you so long as you quit trying to treat me like I’m a damn newborn.” Jasper added.

“I will, I promise.” Edward agreed, though his words held a bit of brotherly teasing. “Trying to force you to slip up to prove that you need someone watching you was a really stupid idea, especially when we all love this place as much as we do, and I should’ve trusted you from the start. You’re my brother, and I should believe you when you tell me that you’re fully capable of handling yourself. You are almost sixty years older than me after all.”

“Are you calling me old, you little punk?” Jasper asked him, grinning in spite of himself.

“Well, you’re not Carlisle old, so there’s that.” Edward countered, and the brothers began laughing together for the first time that I’d seen or heard of since I’d been in Forks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone concerned about Sam's response to Jasper and Alice, I've always felt that Sam's smart enough to know which battles to chose, and he's aware here that Jasper isn't necessarily a threat. The fact that he knows that Jasper can actually feel the feelings that a wolf (Sam) has for his imprint (Emily) is making him reconsider what the elders have said about the Cold Ones in the past.
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed the new chapter, sweets!


	5. A Family Dynamic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "All this time/I never knew I was so strong/But you made me find the fire/That was there all along/In your eyes/I can see all I can be/Suddenly I want it all/And I know you'll catch me if ever I fall..."  
> -"Reachin' for Heaven," by Diana DeGarmo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: Minor depictions of domestic abuse ahead!

Rosalie and Emmett were absent from school on both Thursday and Friday, and Edward told me that they’d gone to Alaska to visit with their “cousins” the Denali Coven for the weekend. I’d heard of them in a few of my visions. Tanya, I knew, had a thing for Edward that made him very uncomfortable, but she was also the one who acted as the head of her family and ensured that they were all taken care of both financially and emotionally. Kate, her younger sister, once had a crush on Jasper years before, but it had since subsided. Irina was their baby sister, and she was a hopeless romantic who fell in love very easily but had yet to find her mate. Carmen and Eleazar were a mated couple who joined the coven after Eleazar left the Volturi once the violence had become too much for both Carmen and him to bear. Since she couldn’t possibly talk to him about her feelings, Jasper told me, Rosalie needed to talk to the only qualified person outside of the situation we were all in, and that person was none other than Kate.

With Emmett and Rosalie absent, Jasper and I sat with Edward at the vampires’ usual table in the cafeteria. Knowing what I did about my own future, I was happy to discover that, when he wasn’t being an annoying asshat who behaved stupidly thinking that it would protect his family, Edward was a great conversationalist and had potential to be the intelligent and wise-cracking older brother I’d never had. He thanked me for the description and assured me that Emmett would be much the same once we’d all finally gotten Rosalie calmed down enough to talk.

“Rose is a complicated person.” Edward told me while Jasper was outside answering a call from Esme. “She’s worried by nature, at least where her family is concerned, and she hates it when we’re put in a tight spot. The last and only time Rosalie had to deal with there being a woman in Jasper’s life, it didn’t end well.”

“Calgary.” I said, and he looked at me in shock.

“How’d you know about that?” he asked, and I snorted.

“Honestly, I’d have found out with or without my powers before I turned fourteen and had that vision. Didn’t Jasper tell you about my stepmother?” I asked in reply, and Edward pinched his brow as he heard the thoughts that I didn’t voice.

“Her? Of all the vampires that could’ve seduced your father for his money, it had to be the Mexican she-demon who psychologically tortured my brother for nearly seventy years before coming back for seconds?” he lamented, and I smirked.

“How’d you think that makes me feel knowing that this crazy bitch has not only tortured my mate but has also convinced my biological father, who’s barely that, to murder my mother? And she’s still going to come after me and my kids one day, so it’s not like I can escape her at this point. I have to sit back and let the future play out for years to come before I can pull her limb from limb and make a nice little bonfire out of her.” I said in a hushed tone, and Edward snickered at my words at the same time Jasper rejoined us at the table.

“I never should’ve told you that’s the only sure way to kill a vampire.” Jasper said, attempting to sound upset with himself but failing as a grin spread across his face.

“What’d Esme want?” Edward asked, and we both raised an eyebrow at him.

“You didn’t listen in on my call?” Jasper asked, and Edward sighed.

“I was going to, but then Alice dropped the Maria bombshell, and I got a little sidetracked.” he admitted.

“Fair enough.” Jasper said. “Anyway, Mom wants Alice to come over tonight before she and I head out to the movies because this is Dad’s night off from work.”

“With Rose out of the house, the expected amount of damage should be zero; I can respect that.” Edward chuckled, smirking at me. “Wouldn’t want my new little sister getting maimed by my other little sister, now, would I.”

Despite the constant reassurances that Carlisle and Esme would love me as soon as we met, my nerves were on edge the whole drive from my aunt’s to the Cullen house. My life’s acceptance to rejection ratio wasn’t exactly the best, and the only person whose rejection I had never feared was Jasper if only because of how well I’ve always known him. But Jasper assured me continually that I had nothing to worry about, and trusting him came as easily to me as loving him. I felt him send another wave of calm my way as he parked Carlisle’s Mercedes in the garage, and I tried not to let my mind wander off into dangerous territory again.

My eyes went to work committing every inch of the house to memory as Jasper led me through the garage and up a staircase backed by a ground-to-third floor window. Every part of the house’s common areas was open, airy, and bright. It made perfect sense to me that Esme would’ve designed the house this way; a home is meant to be a safe space, so why would she not ensure that her home would be the one place that neither she, her husband, nor her children would ever have to hide their true nature. It was beautiful in both sentiment and design choice.

“Are you always this observant?” Edward asked as we entered the main space, tucked away in the family room section with a videogame controller in his hands.

“Only when I’m not in the middle of a vision.” I said as I sat down beside him and looked to see what game he was playing. “ _Battlefront_?”

“Rosalie’s been hogging this game since it came out, and I’d like to at least play it all the way through one time before _Battlefront II_ comes out this fall.” he lamented, and Jasper chuckled.

“She doesn’t allow any of us to play it with her because she says we slow her down too much.” Jasper said in his brother’s defense, and I giggled at the pair of them.

“Oh, shit!” Edward suddenly exclaimed, pausing the game and setting the controller on the coffee table.

“What?” I asked, seeing both his and Jasper’s expressions shift into a mixture of surprise, disbelief, and panic.

“Mom and Dad are on the phone with Kate up in Dad’s office. It’s not entirely good news.” Jasper said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Rosalie and Emmett are on their way back from Alaska, probably almost here honestly, because they found out what the big surprise Kate had for all of us was that she called about the other day.” Edward told me in a tone that hinted that he was happy for Kate regardless of Rosalie’s reaction.

“What was the surprise?” I asked, starting to get worried as well.

“Kate, Tanya, and Irina have excellent control around humans, and Carmen and Eleazar have exceptional control after their time in Italy before finding the Denalis since the Volturi don’t allow hunting within the city limits of Volterra.” Edward explained. “But the other thing that the entire Denali Clan all share is the inability to ignore a child in need. While out hunting a few weeks ago, Kate came across a young boy, no older than twelve, who’d been thrown out by his parents and shunned by his whole town because he’s gay. Kate refused to leave him on the side of a rarely used road in Alaska, in February, and brought him home with her. She’s decided to adopt him, and his name is Elliot.”

“I’m glad I brought my sketchpad with me.” I said, opening it on my lap and flipping through pages until I got to the portrait I’d drawn of Emmett, Rosalie, and Bree. “This might be enough to at least get her to apologize to Kate.”

“I hope you’re right, Darlin’, I hope you’re right.” Jasper said.

“Parents incoming.” Edward said quickly, and Carlisle and Esme appeared on the stairs.

They looked just like I’d seen them in my visions. Esme was about 5’6”, and her figure was more rounded and motherly than, say, Rosalie, but this wasn’t a detracting feature. If anything, this made Esme seem warmer and more inviting; her caramel-colored hair and golden eyes gave her an almost-glow as she smiled in our direction. She was, in so far as I was concerned, the embodiment of the perfect mother. Carlisle stood a full eight inches taller than Esme at 6’2”, and his white-blond hair was a distinct contrast to the darker hues of his wife’s. His eyes, though just as golden and warm as Esme’s, reflected at least a degree of stress that he couldn’t quite hide fast enough. They walked arm-in-arm until they reached the bottom of the stairs, then Esme untangled her arm from her husband’s, walked right up to me, and pulled me into a motherly hug, my sketchbook falling to the floor facedown as I was pulled to my feet. Her hug reminded me so much of Mama that I felt my eyes stinging with tears as she let me go.

“I am so happy that you’re here, Alice, and I am even happier to finally meet you!” she said, her voice gentle and sweet.

“I’m happy to finally meet you, as well.” I said, unable to miss how timid my voice sounded.

“Oh, sweetheart, you don’t have to be afraid of us. I didn’t scare you with the hug, did I?” Esme asked, no doubt as worried by my tone as I was.

“No, no, of course not!” I assured her, trying my best not to cry. “It’s just really nice to get a mom-hug again.”

“As long as you’re a part of this family, Alice, you can have as many mom-hugs as you want. All you have to do is ask.” she told me as Carlisle walked up beside her.

“Alice, I promise that it’s nothing to deal with you that has me stressed.” he said, and I shot both Jasper and Edward looks of betrayal over my shoulder before turning back to face Carlisle.

“I know that, rationally, but the irrational part of my mind insists that I’m causing trouble in your family by upsetting Rosalie who is, in turn, upsetting everyone else.” I admitted, finding myself wrapped in another hug, and this one did make me cry.

“It’s alright, poppet, no one here blames you for Rosalie’s actions.” Carlisle said, just holding me and letting me cry. “What your sister does in the face of change is entirely on her.”

Hearing Carlisle refer to Rosalie as my sister was enough to stun me just long enough for the tears to dry up significantly. I looked up at the man my visions had told me would be who I would always consider to be my real father, and I smiled. As unsure of myself as I had felt less than thirty minutes before, I now felt excited, jubilant even. Most of all, I felt wanted.

“You did the one thing that made it to where you’re stuck with us, little sister.” Edward said, his smirk making me giggle before he even finished his statement. “You, by which I mean really all of us due to Jasper’s runaway thoughts, my big mouth, and Rosalie’s tantrum, made our mother aware that she gets to be a grandma after all. If it was just making Jasper happy, you might have had a chance at the two of you running away on your own, but grandkids? You’re a Cullen for good now.”

“Well, I-” I went to respond to Edward in some snarky manner, but instead I felt myself being pulled into a vison.

**It was Christmas, and the whole family was gathered in the same family room in which I knew our present-day selves were standing. Carlisle was sitting in the armchair, a red Santa hat on his head, and his head was thrown back in laughter. Esme was further back, icing Christmas cookies in the kitchen with a vampire Bella and Emmett, though the two of them were making light-hearted threats of smearing icing on each other. Rosalie was on the sofa with Bree sitting on the floor in front of her, the blonde vampire braiding her daughter’s hair. Edward was at the piano on the other side of the fireplace playing Christmas carols, and a small girl with copper curls sat beside him. Jasper and I were sitting in the L-bend of the couch, and I could see the twins playing on the floor with a child’s chess set. Suddenly, the redheaded girl jumped up from her spot beside Edward and squealed excitedly.**

**“ _Daddy, Momma!_ ” she called, getting Edward and Bella’s attention. “ _My Jacob’s here!_ ”**

**The little girl hurried towards the stairs that led to the garage, and Bella shot Edward a look, so he followed. They returned a short while later with the little girl being carried by a tall, russet-skinned man who had to be one of the shapeshifters. All logic told me that this was Jacob Black, and he was apparently a welcome sight in the Cullen house. Even Rosalie didn’t seem to hold much animosity towards him seeing as how she was the first, aside from Edward and the little redhead, to greet him.**

**“ _Merry Christmas, Fido!_ ” she called, though the nickname was said with a distinct tone of affection.**

**“ _Merry Christmas, Blondie!_ ” Jacob called back, smiling widely as he turned and greeted Bella. “ _Merry Christmas, Bells._ ”**

**“ _Have I told you lately how creepy I think it is that my daughter can sense your arrival a full five minutes before the rest of us can?_ ” Bella asked, half-teasingly, as she handed Jacob a cookie shaped like a snowman. “ _Merry Christmas._ ”**

**“ _I might be the Alpha of my pack, but I don’t make the rules. Plus, it’s the vampire genetics that made her this way._ ” Jacob pointed out as he broke the cookie in half and handed one piece to the redhead balanced on his hip.**

**“ _Speaking of your pack, they’re still coming over for dinner, right?_ ” Emmett piped up, getting a nod in reply.**

**“ _Once Leah’s ready to go, they’ll be on their way. Are the cousins are on their way?_ ” Jacob responded.**

**“ _Garrett says that they’ll be here by dinner time, but Kate’s insisted upon checking over everything at least three times before they can leave the house. She’s almost as nervous as Elliot about us all meeting this Davis boy he’s been seeing._ ” Carlisle said, and then I heard my own voice.**

**“ _Dad, don’t poke fun at Kate when you were just as bad the first time Bella and I met the cousins._ ” I told him teasingly, and he smiled at me.**

**“ _Tanya absolutely hated me when we first met! No one here is going to have a romantic interest in Davis, so I doubt that we’ll run into that issue again._ ” Bella said from the kitchen.**

**“ _Love, Tanya only started liking you after you introduced her to Caleb._ ” Edward added, and Bella shrugged off his words.**

**“ _The point still remains that she likes me now that she doesn’t think that she’s in love with you._ ” she told him.**

The vison faded at this point, and Edward and I stared at each other for almost a solid minute. Reading my mind, he had seen everything I had just then, and he had about as good an idea of how to handle the information as I did. A wave of calm from Jasper jolted both of us out of our mutual stupor, and I hugged Edward enthusiastically.

“Congratulations!” I told him excitedly, and he responded with a dazed smile that told me that he was still in minor disbelief.

“What did you see, Darlin’?” Jasper asked, and I turned to him still beaming.

“Bella’s going to be Edward’s mate, and they’ll have a daughter, too!” I told him, as well as Carlisle and Esme who were looking between Edward and me like tennis spectators.

“We looked like a scene from one of those Hallmark Christmas movies.” Edward said when he could use his words again. “Rosalie was braiding Bree’s hair, the twins were playing with a chess set on the floor, and I was at the piano with my daughter… _my daughter_!”

“Bella and Emmett were in the kitchen, being good children and helping our loving mother bake Christmas cookies, and we were over on the couch just watching it all unfold.” I told Jasper.

“Where was I?” Carlisle asked, and I giggled.

“Where are most dad’s on Christmas morning? You were sitting in that armchair, wearing a Santa hat, watching your grandchildren play while we waited on everyone else to arrive.” I told him cheerily, and Esme got a curious expression on her face.

“Everyone else?” she asked.

“Elliot will have his first boyfriend since joining the Denalis by this time, and all of the cousins will be joining us.” Edward explained. “I think Kate and Garrett are going to become a couple as well, as he was mentioned by name.”

“And I think that Jacob Black is going to imprint on Edward and Bella’s daughter, so we’ll be joined by some of the wolves apparently. We all seem to be friendly in the future, though, because Jacob and Rosalie were getting along.” I added, and Edward groaned.

“I didn’t want that confirmed so I could at least pretend like it wasn’t going to happen!” he lamented, and I giggled. “My baby girl ran off and left me for a shapeshifting wolf!”

“In my vision, she knew Jacob was about to be here almost five minutes before any of us even heard what sounded like a motorcycle pulling into the garage. Bella had to send Edward after her because she ran down the stairs before any of us could stop her.” I said, allowing myself the thought that, at the very least, Edward and Bella wouldn’t have to worry about their daughter bringing home multiple boyfriends for them to meet and disapprove of on pure principle.

“That is a good point.” Edward said, picking up on my thoughts. “Best of luck to the two of you.”

“Should I be scared?” Jasper asked, and Carlisle and Esme both laughed.

“Son, once you’re a parent, the best advice is to always be scared. You can never be entirely sure what ridiculous thing your kids are going to do next.” Esme told him, the sound of a slamming car door punctuating her statement almost too well.

“Like she said…” Carlisle chuckled as Rosalie stormed up the staircase with Emmett behind her, coming to a stop when she saw me standing in the middle of her brothers and parents.

“I’ll be in my room.” she said, but Carlisle cleared his throat.

“Actually, Rosalie, we’re about to have a family meeting. You and Emmett will stay down here for a few minutes before you go anywhere else.” he said, and she turned around but only to aim her best glare at me.

“Then why is she here?” she asked, folding her arms over her chest.

“Whether you like it or not, Alice is a part of this family. Now, please have a seat so we can get started.” Carlisle’s voice was firm, and not even Rosalie was brave enough to cross him.

As a group, we all moved back towards the couch. Edward, almost begrudgingly, saved and closed out his videogame and placed the controller back on the coffee table before relaxing into his spot on the couch. Jasper pulled me halfway into his lap in the L-bend where we’d been sitting in my vision, and Rosalie led Emmett to the end of the couch on the other side of Edward so that they would be the furthest from me. Carlisle sank down into the armchair, and Esme, instead of staying by him as I’d expected her to do, moved to sit on the couch in the empty spot beside me.

“I know that Ed, Rose, and I are probably in trouble for what we did to Jasper this last week, but can I just start this whole thing off by saying that I’m sorry?” Emmett said once we were all seated, and the fact that I felt Jasper open himself up beside me told me that Emmett was being honest. “What we did was wrong, both to Jasper and to Alice, and it put this family more at risk than Jasper not being watched twenty-four/seven. Also, I should’ve have fought harder to give Alice a chance.”

“Alice? Jasper?” Carlisle asked, and I looked up at my boyfriend’s face as he thought about what he was going to say to his youngest brother.

“Whether Alice forgives you or not is entirely up to her. As for me, you know how much I hate fightin’ with you, man. You’re my little brother, and I love you very much, but sometimes I feel that you forget which one of us is the oldest. I know my own limits.” Jasper’s response to Emmett was similar to what he’d told Edward.

“If Jasper forgives you, then I see no reason not to follow suit. I’ve already forgiven Edward, and his behavior towards me was much worse than yours, Emmett.” I said, and my newest brother grinned at me with a wide, boyish smile.

“I’m glad to see that you boys have made amends with your brother and sister. Now, continuing on with the purpose of this family meeting, we, as to say Carlisle and I, have concluded that we’ve all been on edge around here for the last two weeks.” Esme said, and I could her the edge that she was speaking of in her tone as she turned to the person who’d raised her hand. “Rosalie?”

“I hope you don’t expect me to apologize and start acting like she’s my sister when she’s not even a part of this family.” the blonde sniped.

“No one was expecting you to apologize, your highness, trust me.” Jasper drawled.

“What do you know? After almost two weeks, he is still capable of actually speaking to me instead of around me.” Rosalie quipped, and I noticed the way that both Emmett and Edward were trying to hide themselves unsuccessfully within the couch cushions.

“Well, you’d be as damn tired as I am of tryin’ to speak to you if you only got your head snapped of every time you said somethin’ too!” Jasper responded.

“I wouldn’t snap so much if you’d quit only thinking about yourself and start thinking about the rest of this family for once!” Rosalie exclaimed, and I found that comment to be the one that broke the dam wide open for me.

“Tell me you’re talking to yourself right now, Rosalie, because you’re the only one behaving like that. Everything Jasper’s done for fifty years has been what he believed best for this family, and he’s done this without complaint all this time because he’s been convinced that doing anything for himself will get him kicked out of this family when no one else has these worries.” I said finally, the anger in my own voice scaring even me.

“Jasper, son, you know that we’d never disown you no matter what happened, right?” Carlisle asked.

“Yes, I know that… _now_.” Jasper responded, but his hesitation was evident.

“We can speak about this more later on, but there are other things that need to be discussed first.” Carlisle told him before turning to the other three. “Each of you three will be out of school for the next week with chicken pox. If anyone asks, Rosalie and Jasper’s birth parents divorced when they were toddlers, and they were raised separately until they were twelve; in that time, Jasper had chicken pox, making him unable to catch it from the three of you. Thankfully, we’ve had a few cases at the hospital this week, so we can plausibly claim that I accidentally brought it home.”

“Are we being grounded?” Edward asked, sounding the most unsure I’d ever heard him sound.

“No, you’re not being grounded.” Esme insisted. “We just want you all to have some space while everything you’ve recently learned sinks in, so we’ve decided that Emmett and Rosalie are going to take their plane to the cabin for the week. You, on the other hand, are going back to Chicago to do something very important for me. I got the deed to the townhouse, finally, and I need you to go through and see what all needs to be restored or replaced.”

“You got it? When?” Edward asked her excitedly, and Esme smiled at him.

“The deed arrived in the mail while you were at school, and I didn’t have to worry about you pulling it from my mind because I was so preoccupied with Rosalie.” she explained. “You’ll be taking the smaller plane, and it leaves at midnight.”

“I’ll go pack!” Edward said, bolting from the room before anyone could stop him.

“If that’s all, Emmett and I should go pack as well. My current bags are packed for Alaska, not Tennessee, so they will need some repacking.” Rosalie said, and Carlisle gave her a short nod.

She headed upstairs without Emmett, as he stopped short of following her when his foot brushed against my fallen sketchpad. I wanted to stop him, but I was too late. When he picked it up and looked at the page that I’d left it on, he looked up at me in disbelief.

“What’s this?” he asked, and I took a deep breath before explaining.

“I’ve used art as my outlet for years, and I’ve also used it to strengthen my powers. Usually, I do this by putting my pencil on the page and focusing on the future. Whatever vision I get pulled into becomes the sketch, and I add color in later. I drew this on Tuesday, and all I saw was that this girl is going to be yours and Rosalie’s daughter. Her name is Bree, and she’s about sixteen by the looks of it. She’s already a vampire by the time the vision takes place, and she loves you guys enough to force herself to make it through whatever human-filled event you’re at in the vision.” I told him, and he smiled softly at the page.

“Bree.” he let out in a breath as his eyes remained transfixed on the young girl’s face.

“Emmett, do you want me to make you a copy?” I asked, daring to disrupt his concentration, and he nodded slowly before handing me back my sketchpad.

“Thank you, Alice.” he said, and I knew he meant for more than just the copy of the sketch I’d offered to make.

With Rosalie and our brothers away for the week, I spent most of Saturday with Esme while Jasper ran a series of errands for her and Carlisle was at the hospital. It would be years before I would tell my aunt, but it was absolutely amazing to have a mom to talk to once more. As much as I loved Aunt Catherine, there were still some things that I couldn’t possibly talk about with her. At the top of this list, one of the things that Esme had made me feel comfortable enough to tell her, was how Mama had died. I sobbed heavily as I told her how Richard done it, but Esme just held me close to her chest and told me to let out me emotions. As I cried into her shoulder, hugging her back, a vision of a younger, human Esme popped into my mind’s eye.

**Esme was pressed against a wall by a man whose size was significantly greater than her own, and pure terror shone in her brown eyes. The man slapped her across the face and complained that his dinner was cold. Esme opened her mouth to apologize, but this was met with a punch to the jaw. The vision shifted from this to another scene of the same man kissing Esme goodbye as he boarded a train dressed in an army uniform. It shifted again, and the man had Esme pinned down to a bed. It shifted before I saw much more of that scene, for which I was thankful, to Esme begging another woman to hide her. The woman promised, but the she betrayed Esme by going behind her back to tell the man where Esme had gone. Esme left for another place before she could be found, and was at this point heavily pregnant. Another jump, and I saw her sobbing over the loss of her baby, a tiny little boy with tiny little lungs that just couldn’t support him; then, Esme was standing at the top of a cliff. She jumped, crashed to the ground, and laid there for hours before being found and taken to a hospital where her body was sent to the morgue instead of an operating room. The last thing I saw before returning to the present was Carlisle leaning over Esme and gently biting her neck.**

“-lice, Alice, sweetheart, is everything alright?” I heard Esme asking, and I blinked away the remaining tears in my eyes while nodding.

“I’m sorry.” I said. “I wasn’t expecting that.”

“What did you see?” she asked, and I took a breath before telling her everything.

Esme wasn’t upset that I now knew about her past, that I had seen it in a way that only Edward and herself ever had. She told me of how, shortly before she and Carlisle married, Edward had tried a normal vampire’s diet and made sure that Charles Evenson, her abusive first husband, had been his first victim. I asked her how it had been for her to open herself up to love and family as a vampire, especially after what she’d gone through during her first marriage, and she laughed lightly.

“My parents were never wealthy, but they weren’t poor either, so my mother found it to be of the upmost importance that I find a suitable husband as soon as possible. Once, when I was just newly sixteen, she invited yet another suitor to dinner; when I realized what she’d done, I’d ran outside and climbed a tree to both escape the suitor and drive him away with how ‘unladylike’ my behavior was. I ended up falling from the tree and broke my leg. Our local doctor was out of town, so I had to see the doctor who was covering for him: Dr. Carlisle Cullen.” she told me, and I grinned.

“Did you love him at first sight?” I asked, and Esme chuckled.

“I wouldn’t call it love, but I would’ve ran away with him in the dead of night, no pun intended, if he’d asked me right then and there. The first time your father walked into that consultation room, I told myself that he was the man I was going to marry. He was a smart and handsome doctor that was completely unafraid of telling my mother off for being overbearing. My mother could see that I liked Carlisle and tried to invite him over for dinner, but he left town very quickly after our initial meeting. As it turned out, he knew I was his mate then just as I knew that I would marry him. I was only sixteen-years-old at the time, however, and he didn’t feel comfortable with turning me while I was so young. He intended to come back when I was a few years older, but then he sired Edward and got a little distracted. In his absence, I married Charles to shut up my mother; when he got abusive, I was told to keep it secret so there wouldn’t be a scandal for him. As much as that pissed me of then and still pisses me off now, I don’t honestly regret it. If I had done anything differently, I might not have ever found my way back to Carlisle, and then I wouldn’t be the mother of three handsome sons and three beautiful daughters, even if I’ve only met two, the grandmother of four wonderful grandchildren, and the wife of who I believe is the most amazing man on the face of the Earth.” she explained. “If dealing with an abusive asshole like my first husband and losing my baby was what it took for me to find my real family, then I would never change a thing about my human life.”

“I don’t think I can be so charitable.” I admitted, nothing outside of contempt covering my feelings towards my human father and vampire stepmother.

“No one in their right mind would blame you for feeling this way, sweetheart.” Esme said, giving me a gentle, sideways hug.

When school started back on Monday, no one batted an eye at the chicken pox story. No one seemed to care where the missing Cullen children were as all anyone could talk about was the upcoming Sweethearts Ball at the end of the month. I did my best to fake an interest in the dance, especially when Angela began telling me about Eric asking her to be his date during our art class on Tuesday, but I just couldn’t fake my excitement around Jasper; with as busy as my aunt and uncle had gotten with their respective jobs in the past week, Lauren had gone to Jessica’s after school got out on Wednesday while Cynthia and I went to the Cullen house with Jasper.

“We don’t have to go.” he told me as I swapped my book for geometry for the one for French. “If you want to go to the dance, I won’t mind, but we don’t have to go.”

“I wouldn’t know what to do if we did.” I admitted. “I’ve never gone to a school dance.”

“I’ve never gone to one willingly. Most of the time, Edward and I have to go just to keep an eye on Rosalie and Emmett.” Jasper chuckled, and I smiled softly.

“If I feel more confident about dances by the end of next month, I’ll go to prom with you this year; if not, we’ll find something else to do together so you don’t get stuck babysitting those two again.” I said, giggling at the love and affection that swirled around me as Jasper leaned in to kiss me.

“Je t'aime ma chère.” he said as we parted.

“Je t 'aime plus chéri.” I replied with a smile, opening my book to the page for the day’s homework.

Thursday passed in similar fashion to the days before it. As on those nights, Jasper met me in my bedroom once my aunt, uncle, cousin, and sister were asleep. It didn’t take me long to fall asleep myself once Jasper began reading aloud, but softly, from a complete collection edition of _The Chronicles of Narnia_. I remembered hearing about the inquisitive little Lucy Pevensie finding more than fur coats inside the old wardrobe, but the events following that were lost to my dreams. A vision woke me shortly before sunrise; or, rather, Jasper woke me from a sob-filled slumber once the vision had ended with my emotions bouncing between sadness and fear.

“Darlin’, it’s alright. Whatever it is, I promise, it’s alright. I’m right here, and I’ll always keep you safe.” he told me soothingly, arms wrapped securely around my midsection.

“Elle va me les prendre. Elle va emmener mes bébés.” I rambled out in rapid, quiet French, something that occurred during times of extreme emotional distress with French actually being my first language.

“Alice, who’s gonna try takin’ our children? Maria?” Jasper asked, and I nodded against his chest.

“Unless something keeps her from finding out about us, her current future-trajectory has her taking them.” I told him.

“I would never let her take our babies away from us, away from you.” he insisted, but I shook my head.

“You can’t stop her, honey, not as long as her venom is the strongest inside your mark.” I said, unsurprised when he put a hand to his throat. “If anything, she can take you just as easily as she can take the twins.”

“I’ll talk to Dad about this as soon as he gets home.” he promised, gentle waves of calm rolling off him and onto me.

“Ya know, I was hoping for a much more pleasant birthday vision this year. I mean, last year’s would be pretty difficult to improve upon, but anything would’ve been better than what I just saw.” I said once I felt calm enough to joke.

“What was last year’s vision?” Jasper asked.

“Remember when I told you that I’d become certain last year that I was always meant to be yours, that I found out how I would become a vampire, and that I’d seen every inch of your body?” I asked, and he nodded slowly as the realization became apparent in his expression. “Happy birthday to me.”

Jasper chuckled deeply before pulling me in for a kiss. When we parted, he reached back behind him and picked up a small, square, silver box with a bright yellow bow on top. I smiled, giddy at the sight of an actual birthday present.

“Happy birthday to you, Darlin’.” he said as he handed me the box, and I opened it to reveal an oval-shaped, silver locket with an intricate pattern engraved into its surface along with a butterfly made up of one stone I recognized and two that I didn’t.

“It’s beautiful.” I told him. “Thank you.”

“My mama gave this to me before I left home for the army. Each of the butterfly’s wings is a different type of the gemstone Jasper, its body is a piece of Blue Agate, and its head is a piece of a stone called Cat’s Eye.” he explained. “It’s one of two things from my human life that I’ve never let go of, and I want you to have it.”

“Just curious, what’s the other thing?” I asked, and he pulled a silver chain from beneath his collar to reveal a small medallion hanging from the end.

“An oddity for East Texas in the mid-1800s, Josiah Whitlock wasn’t exactly a devout man, and how he ended up married to preacher’s daughter Eloise Harper has always been a mystery. My father believed that honest, hard work meant more than any faith could provide and often looked at religion as something frivolous to be avoided. Mama was different, very devout, and didn’t like the idea of her only son going off to war. She hid this Saint Michael medallion in the locket when she gave it to me so that my father would never know. I kept it inside the locket until Dad gave me this chain for Christmas my second year in the family; after that, I put the locket in my desk where no one would find it on accident and potentially damage it until I decided that I should give it to the person I love the most in this world.” Jasper told me, but he tensed suddenly as he finished his explanation.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Your aunt and uncle are waking up now. I need to go.” he answered, and I pulled him down for another kiss.

“I’ll see you after school?” I asked him as we parted, and he nodded.

“I hate that your birthday has to be one of the few sunny days we get this year, Darlin’.” he said, and I shrugged.

“If I’m lucky, no one at school will even know what today is yet, and I’ll have a relatively normal day.” I said, but he chuckled.

“Let me know how that goes.” he said. “You do live with Lauren, who’s perpetually attached to Jessica at the hip, so your chances of no one knowing are slim.”

“For that, I’m keeping you for another few minutes.” I said before giving him a deep kiss that he eagerly returned.

Jasper slipped out through my window nearly ten minutes later with seconds to spare before Aunt Catherine opened my bedroom door. She asked me to meet her and Uncle Michael in the garage once I was dressed, leaving me to get myself ready for the day. I put together an outfit consisting of dark wash skinny jeans, a yellow lace blouse, a blue cardigan, and a brown belt that matched my brown, high-heeled boots. Satisfied with my choices, I proceeded to shower; ordinarily, I would’ve waited to shower later that evening since I’d showered before bed the night before, but after my vision and what was more or less a make-out session with Jasper, it became necessary for me to shower before going down to breakfast. I showered, dressed, and brushed through my hair rather quickly, intrigued by Aunt Catherine’s request. When I met my aunt and uncle in the garage, they were standing in front of a light blue Toyota Solara with its top down to reveal its tan interior.

“Happy birthday!” they chorused, and I felt my jaw drop.

“Really?” I asked, half-excited and half-disbelieving.

“Really, Alice.” my uncle said, smiling widely.

“Don’t worry about the cost, especially since we got it for significantly less than its retail value at an auction and had it completely looked over by a reputable mechanic, and just enjoy it. We’ll head out for you to take your road test after breakfast, and you’ll be staying home from school for the day.” Aunt Catherine told me, not leaving me much room for any argument.

I texted Jasper to let him know what was going on, and he relayed Esme’s request that I drive myself over to the Cullen house if I passed my road test. When I pulled into the driveway just before noon, all three of the vampires who were home met me outside with smiles on their faces. This was the first time I’d seen a vampire in the sunlight in person, seeing as how Maria never dared take the risk, and the way the light refracted off their skin reminded me of a mirror ball. Even knowing about how vampires’ cells are constructed out of a crystalline substance, I was still mildly impressed at this first encounter. Part of me felt eager to see what the glow of a Dhampir in direct sunlight would look like in person as well. Getting out of the car, I found myself being swept into Jasper’s arms and spun around in circles.

“You obviously passed your road test.” he chuckled, and I giggled.

“I might have cheated a bit, sneaking a peek to see where I’d need to turn and stuff.” I admitted through my laughter, the vampires all joining in as Esme led me into the house.

Carlisle and Jasper didn’t follow us, and one look told me that Esme wasn’t surprised. I followed her into the kitchen, taking a seat at the island while she began taking out a host of pre-prepped ingredients. She looked up at me after about a minute and reassured me that they would be inside soon. I gave a short nod as a response while thinking about what they could be doing. It was obvious to me that Jasper wanted to be far away from Esme and me when he and Carlisle went through the Claiming ritual.

“It’s gonna hurt for him, isn’t it?” I asked as Esme dropped a handful of angel hair pasta into a pot of boiling water.

“I’m not even gonna bother lying to you, sweetheart. It’s going to hurt like hell, and Jasper doesn’t want us feeling even a bit of that on accident. There’s no way to take the sting out of vampire venom, not even if the person being bit is already a vampire.” she answered as she dropped diced tomatoes and zucchini into one skillet and about half-a-pound of diced chicken breast into another.

“I feel like it’s my fault he’s going to be in that much pain.” she raised an eyebrow at me while alternating which pan of ingredients she was stirring.

“Alice, this is something I’ve been urging that boy to do since Calgary, but he never thought it would be necessary because he thought that Maria understood that she was never going to be accepted by any of us so she wouldn’t come back.” Esme told me as she combined the veggies and chicken into one skillet. “I’ve always known that she wouldn’t stay away for good, and I’ve never not doubted that she would want to take not just Jasper but Edward as well for the same reasons that Aro wants them.”

“It’s the same reason she wants me back, too.” I said with a roll of my eyes. “Aro probably won’t be any different.”

“Oh, no, he might actually be worse. It was years before anyone could figure out that there was a pattern to it all, and it ended up being Jasper and Edward who figured it out, but Aro’s formed a very specific MO when he, ah, _acquires_ new members of the guard.” she told me with a snort. “In most cases, he makes up a new law that the coven he sees as a threat has somehow broken and kills all but the one or ones he wants for the guard. Aro ensures that word gets out to every other vampire in the world when this happens, and he goes about his day as if he hasn’t just ripped apart a family. The only reason my boys are safe, even now, is because Aro isn’t bold enough to cross your father. Carlisle is his only true friend in the world, and he knows that he’d have to kill his best friend to take any member of this family unless he wants Carlisle to just compel them back here…Well, at least that’s what Aro thinks, anyway.”

“After today, it’ll just be me and Bella who’d be the exceptions…at least for now.” I pointed out as she strained the pasta and poured it into a cranberry colored bowl.

“Ya know, I’ve been meaning to ask you, ever since Jasper came home and started talking about the Claiming ritual, were you able to find this information on the internet or do you have another source?” Esme asked, checking to make sure that the chicken was cooked all the way through as she spoke.

“The internet has minimal information, at best.” I said. “When I was little, Mama told me that, if I ever had questions about my gift and she wasn’t around to help me, I should contact a woman named Gwendolyn Scott in New Orleans; she’s a witch and has an extensive lore library. Her granddaughter, Maddie, knows the Vault better than anyone other than Gwendolyn, and she’s been a great help…” I trailed off as Charlie Swan’s words from dinner nearly two weeks earlier came back to me. “I’ve got to get in contact with her; she’ll have more information on Bella because Bella and Maddie are friends, and Maddie’s who Bella spent her spring break with instead of visiting Charlie!”

“As happy as I would be for you to find out more about your sister, Alice, it will have to wait until after you’ve eaten your birthday lunch.” Esme told me as she slid the cranberry colored bowl across the counter, the chicken and veggies mixed in with the pasta and coated in a light Italian dressing.

I smiled brightly at her, took a bite, swallowed, and smiled even wider. It was the best homecooked meal I’d ever had up to that point, and I knew that I’d have given Jasper emotional whiplash if he’d been in the room with us. I was ecstatic to have a homecooked meal from my mom, and it did taste amazing, but I was also saddened as my brain reminded me that Mama was still gone. Seeing the smile that spread across Esme’s face when I smiled at her, however, cheered my right back up again.

“This is the best thing I think I’ve ever eaten.” I told her, pausing before deciding to plow ahead with what had come to my mind. “Thank you, Mom.”

“You’re very welcome, sweetheart.” she told me, moving pots and pans over to the sink. “Happy birthday!”

By the time Jasper and Carlisle returned to the house, the clock showed that it was almost three. Jasper walked straight over to where Esme and I were sitting in the family room and sat down beside me, and Carlisle made his way over to Esme at a slightly slower pace. Jasper pecked me on the lips, and I gave him a short nod in response to the question he wanted to ask but couldn’t bring himself to voice. Looking into our shared future, I couldn’t see Maria making off with the twins any longer, but her plans of attacking our family remained unchanged. I voiced this to the room, and all four of us agreed that a little change was better than none.

“At least, if she tries anything, she’ll have a more difficult time of it.” Carlisle said, and I knew he was right.

“I’m still not okay with the idea of Maria even thinking about coming around this family again, but knowing that she can’t force Jasper to go with her does make me feel a bit better.” Esme added, smiling over at Jasper.

“I’d never leave my family without a fight, Mom.” he told her, and she beamed.

“Two of my kids calling me ‘Mom’ in one day? It’s a miracle!” she joked, and Jasper and I laughed together while Carlisle chuckled softly.

“Speaking of our children and miracles, love, is it time for us to give Alice her birthday present?” he asked, and Esme gave him a little nod before standing.

“Follow us, please, Alice?” she asked me, and I stood without hesitation before following them up the stairs with Jasper right behind me.

The room we ended up in was decently sized and had an entire wall that was nothing but windows. Easels, paints, brushes, and other art supplies were everywhere inside this room; I couldn’t decided then what I wanted to work with first between the watercolors, charcoals, acrylics, and oil-based paints as well as the multitudes of colorful modeling clays and colored pencils. It was the perfect in-home studio.

“This is…incredible!” I exclaimed.

“You’ll probably have to share this space with your father from time to time, but we felt that you should have some place outside of school where you can work on pieces of art that might be bigger than your sketchbook.” Esme said, and I grinned.

“I don’t mind if I have to share with Dad.” I said as I walked around the room examining everything in sight. “What good is art if no one ever sees it?”

“Jasper,” I heard Carlisle clear his throat unnecessarily as he spoke, “why don’t you tell Alice how we turned this room into a studio?”

“This was originally Edward’s music room. You were right about it having the best natural light for painting in the house, and moving Edward’s things into another room wasn’t that major of a task.” Jasper told me, and I turned to stare at him until he continued as I could tell by his tone that he was hiding something. “We needed a room for Edward’s things, so I gave up my study because I never use the damn thing to begin with on account of how confining being stuck at a desk while I’m working feels. I have a bed in my room so I can stretch out while working, so I don’t see the need for two spaces. It’ll do Edward more good than it will me.”

“Spin it however you want, honey, I think it’s sweet that you gave up your study so I could have an art studio.” I said softly as I walked back over to him and wrapped my arms around his neck.

“There’s very little I wouldn’t give up for you, Darlin’.” he admitted with a smile before kissing me lightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoyed this one, sweets! Leave a comment or Kudos if you did!


	6. Blue Around the Morning Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Just before the thunder roars/I sense you next to me/And as I move through nature/I know where you must be/So must keep myself apart/Here is where I'll stay/With a bell, book and candle/To keep your ghost away..."  
> -"Bell, Book, and Candle," by Eddi Reader

Life continued on in a mostly pleasant fashion throughout the following weeks. I had been surprised when Rosalie sought me out to apologize when she, Emmett, and Edward had arrived home. Hers and Emmett’s time away had, as Esme had intended, given her time to process all of the information that had been unloaded on her during my first two weeks in Forks and realized exactly how cruel she had been. She hadn’t seemed the least bit surprised when I conditionally forgave her so long as she also apologized to Jasper for the way she’d treated him. Nothing else was said on the matter as, almost in conjunction with her agreeing to apologize to Jasper, the sounds of Edward’s exasperated exclamations reached my ears. Rosalie followed me as I hurried to the art studio, and she laughed merrily as I shook my head at Edward; after some explaining from Carlisle and Esme, he relented to the room switch. The fact that Jasper had willingly given up his study had surprised all three of the younger vampires, and I could tell that Rosalie was starting to understand my comment from the previous week when I’d told her that he had always put the family’s well being above his own desires.

A few weeks into April, I ended up on a spur-of-the-moment Saturday shopping trip with Rosalie after the blonde walked into the art studio while I was working on a portrait of Esme for Mother’s Day and told me that she wanted to take her new little sister out to get a new wardrobe worthy of the Cullen name. It was a rainy weekend in Seattle, and I found myself enjoying being “trapped” in the mall with my new older sister more than I had thought that I ever would. Rosalie was easily a ten-times better shopping partner than my cousin had been, and she was happy to let me pick out things for her to try on as well.

“This is really great.” I told her as we entered our fourth shoe store of the trip looking for a particular pair of boots to match one of the outfits Rosalie had picked for me. “I’ve never had a big sister, just been one, and it’s different when your sister is physically almost a decade younger than you.”

“Well, I’ve never had any sisters, and I’m pleased to say that this is really cool for me, too. I’ve been hoping that Jasper and Edward would find their mates for years, just so I’d have sisters, and I never expected my sisters to be humans. But, after what you’ve told me about Bella and what I’ve seen of yours and Jasper’s relationship, I don’t think I could ever have had better sisters.” Rosalie said quietly to me as we searched.

When Rosalie dropped me off at my aunt and uncle’s house that night, I only took a couple of shopping bags inside with me. Rosalie insisted that the rest of our purchases would be kept at the house where she and Esme were working together on redesigning Jasper’s closet so that it go from being his to being ours. She insisted that the combination of the clothes and the closet were hers and Emmett’s belated birthday presents to me, and I decided against objecting. I was still all smiles when Jasper let himself into my bedroom a couple of hours later.

“Good day?” he asked, and I responded with a smile and nod. “Rose seemed happy when she got home. I got kicked out so she could work on the closet again.”

“Oh, as if you weren’t planning on coming here anyway.” I teased, walking over and kissing him softly.

“Fair point; are you ready for bed?” he asked.

“Not sure if I’ll go to sleep right away, but I’m definitely ready to listen to you read to me. Which one are we on now?” I answered as I got under the blankets and he removed his boots.

“We’re in the middle of _Voyage of the Dawn Treader_.” he reminded me as he got into bed beside me and thumbed through the book to the page on which we’d last stopped.

At the beginning of May, there was still almost a month left in the school year. This, however, did not stop Richard’s lawyers from sending Aunt Catherine and Uncle Michael a letter asking for my “safe” return to Mississippi by the end of the month. My two months were, in Richard’s eyes, over and done. My aunt and uncle were not happy about the letter, and neither were Esme and Carlisle when I told them.

“There has to be a way that we can keep her here, right?” Esme asked, looking to Carlisle to have the answer.

“I can only think of one that would work with what we already know about the situation, but I would need to speak with Alice in private.” he answered, and I found myself inordinately glad that Edward had driven down to Portland for his Mother’s Day gift for Esme.

“Rosalie and Emmett are out hunting. Jasper, what do you say we join them for a bit?” Esme responded, but Jasper looked worriedly over at me.

“Honey, go; everything’ll be fine, I promise. I’ll be here with Dad, so it’s going to be okay.” I said, and he gave me a small nod.

“I’ll be back in two hours max.” Jasper said before giving me a quick kiss and following Esme out the door.

Carlisle and I went to his office to have our impending discussion, and part of me whished that I’d asked Jasper to stay just so that he could explain my own emotions to me. Another part was glad that he wouldn’t be around to hear what I was about to say. It’s not that I wanted to make it a habit of keeping secrets from him; I would never intentionally lie to or keep Jasper in the dark about something unless it proved to be a hazard to his health, so that list had always been fairly short given that vampires don’t usually face health crises. What I knew I needed to tell Carlisle, this was one thing that could send Jasper into a state of anger that would infect the whole town if left uncontrolled.

Carlisle shared his office with Esme, the room looking as though it was literally divided down the middle between medical journals and binder-bound copies of Architectural Digest, and I knew that the paintings on the walls were all done by Carlisle himself. They shared the space intentionally, their way of having somewhere where they could work together in silence when they wanted. I thought this to be a rather sweet gesture on both their parts, but that didn’t stop me from feeling nervous as I sat down in Esme’s chair. Taking a breath, I reasoned with myself. I was in no danger. I felt safe there, safe with Carlisle who, unlike Richard, would never hurt me. He was my dad, the only father I would ever claim, and he was here, sitting on the other side of the desk, trying to protect me.

“Poppet, look at me.” he said, and I raised my eyes to meet his. “Anything you tell me today is off the record. If what I think happened is true, I want you to come to the hospital for your next round of boosters for your vaccines tomorrow. I can even explain the need to your aunt and uncle if you so wish, but I will be the one to see you during your check-up if only so the person reporting isn’t legally related to you…yet.”

“I know better than to ask if you know the statistics on children who witness domestic abuse or on the likelihood of an abuser to repeat the abuse or seek out a new target when the focus of their abuse is no longer present.” I said, taking a breath before continuing. “After he killed my mother, I became the recipient of Richard Brandon’s abusive behaviors. Being a vampire, he couldn’t exactly beat Maria the way he did Mama without hurting himself, and she always made sure to never give him a reason to be angry with her so he’d never find out what he married. It always ended up being my fault, and I think I know why. On Maria’s part, she recognized how easy it would be to convince me to let her turn me once I was old enough if my self-esteem was downtrodden enough; if a person is low enough, they’d take whatever escape presented itself. She had no way of knowing that I was just buying myself and Cynthia time until it was time for me to get my baby sister to safety and go looking for who I already knew would be my real family.”

“Alice, what in your medical file would reflect your experiences?” he asked me gently.

“In the first year after Mama died, I had several bruised cheeks, black eyes, and split lips. Pretty much all of these were explained away to the doctors as me being a clumsy child, which doesn’t really fit with the fact that I was a gymnast until Mama died. Bruising continued after that, and I had some bruised ribs once about a year ago along with a concussion that Richard told the doctors at the hospital had happened when I fell while horseback riding at my great-grandmother’s.” I answered, and he nodded before reaching across the desk to take one of my hands in his.

“Oh, my sweet poppet, I am so sorry for what you had to go through while still so young.” he said, but I smiled at him in spite of the depressing nature of the conversation.

“Don’t be, Dad.” I told him. “A very wise woman once told me if the abuse she suffered was what it took to find her family, then it was worth it.”

“Your mother is a very wise woman, isn’t she?” Carlisle said, smiling back at me.

“We’re all lucky to have her.” I replied, but I could tell that Carlisle wanted to get back to the serious part of the conversation. “The abuse never went beyond the bumps and bruises. Maria wanted me just damaged enough, not completely broken, because she didn’t want to put that much effort into rehabilitating me once I was changed. She wanted me to harbor enough anger and resentment to be a good soldier, but not enough to turn me feral.”

“I must say that I am glad for both your abuse not being any worse than that, not that any abuse is ever good, and for your ability to hold onto hope that your visions would lead you home. No matter what anyone tries to say, you are my daughter, Alice, and I will never let you be forced to return to an abusive environment.” Carlisle said, and I was out of my seat and hugging him instantly.

“I love you, Dad.” I told him, and he hugged me back and dropped a kiss onto my hair.

“I love you, too, Poppet.”

Carlisle decided to drive me back to Aunt Catherine’s that night, as Jasper had picked me up that morning in the Mercedes, so that he could talk with my aunt and uncle about how to best secure custody of me from Richard for good. Uncle Michael understood why Carlisle thought it would be best to do the examination and immunization himself from a legal standpoint. He said that he’d be working overtime in Port Angeles instead of at the local hospital for the next week anyway, and Aunt Catherine said that she would contact her lawyer in Seattle to set up a meeting to take him Carlisle’s report. We all knew that another report would have to be given to Charlie Swan in his role as the police chief, but we also knew that Charlie wouldn’t be able to do much about it unless Richard showed up in Forks at some point. When the conversation ended and Aunt Catherine walked Carlisle to the door, I lingered in the living room. Uncle Michael had gone to finish washing the dinner dishes that he’d been washing when we’d arrived, so I was alone in the room. I was aware that Carlisle could still smell me and hear my breathing, but I wanted to know what my aunt was going to say to him.

“I’m not surprised by any of what Richard did to that poor girl, but I am surprised that Alice opened up to you about it. She’s typically a very private person.” my aunt said.

“It wasn’t actually me she opened up to, I’m afraid. Esme has, shall we say, an in-depth understanding of domestic violence from before she and I were together, and she was able to see some of the signs in Alice.” Carlisle responded.

“Oh, I had no idea. I guess that knowing that she’s not alone would definitely be of help to Alice.” my aunt replied. “Esme is comfortable talking about all of this with Alice, though, right?”

“Yes, she is very comfortable in speaking with Alice about their similar experiences.” Carlisle assured her. “If anything, her conversations with Alice are the most Esme has spoken of her own experiences in quite some time.”

“She’s afraid to tell me anything because she doesn’t want to upset me. I don’t disagree with her belief that I don’t need to know every detail of how my sister died, but I do wish that she would at least talk to me about something rather than keeping it all to herself.” Aunt Catherine said.

“Give her time, Catherine, and she will talk to you about her last seven years. I’ve seen it with plenty of patients; they’re more comfortable talking to a stranger who they don’t fear judging them than they are with a family member. After your sister died, Alice only got to see you a handful of times; you have to rebuild the bond you had with her before Melissa’s death before she’ll trust you enough to tell you more.” Carlisle told her, and I privately thought that his response was probably better than I just find it easier to talk to Esme because she’s pretty much my mother already.

“I guess that’ll be my homework then, bond with my oldest niece.” Aunt Catherine remarked, half-jokingly, and I smiled to myself. “Of course, that’ll happen whenever Jasper and Rosalie aren’t monopolizing her time.”

“I’ve been hearing complaints about that myself. Edward keeps trying to find time to finish at least one game of chess with Alice, and Emmett says that he’s finished the book she recommended to him and wants to discuss it.” Carlisle said, chuckling, and I sighed happily inwardly at my siblings’ and mate’s inability to share my attention for more than five minutes.

The phone rang, and Aunt Catherine bid Carlisle goodnight before walking towards the kitchen to answer it. Once she’d passed the living room doorway, I made my way outside and called out to Carlisle to wait. He turned towards me with a smile, and I hurried over to hug him.

“Thanks, Dad, for everything.” I said, giggling slightly as I continued. “Would you please tell everyone that I’ll play chess with Edward after I finish Mom’s gift and have a book club meeting with Emmett?”

“Of course, Poppet.” he said. “I believe you have company upstairs.”

“We’re starting _The Last Battle_ tonight.” I told him, and he nodded.

“Sweet dreams, Poppet.” he said with a knowing smile.

“I love you, Dad.” I said, giving him one last hug.

“I love you, too, Alice.” he told me before releasing me and walking towards the Mercedes while I hurried back inside and up to my room where I knew Jasper would be waiting.

Despite it being a Sunday morning, Aunt Catherine was able to secure a meeting for Monday afternoon when she called her lawyer at home and explained the situation. She would have to drive to Seattle after dropping Cynthia off at school, and she would be staying the night in Seattle so that she wouldn’t have to drive home in the dark. Lately, Aunt Catherine’s dreams had been of mountain lions lurking in the darkness and trying to catch her as she drove along a darkened road, so she was avoiding nighttime travel at all costs. Uncle Michael was still working his overnight shifts in Port Angeles, so this would leave Cynthia, Lauren, and me alone on Monday night. Well, Jasper would be with me, but no one else in the house knew that. When I pointed out that we’d be alone to my aunt and uncle, they frowned.

“Mom, I’ll be sixteen by the end of the month, and Alice already is, so I think we can survive for one night by ourselves.” Lauren said with a snort as she ate the Mother’s Day breakfast that the three of us had helped Uncle Michael prepare.

“While I know that you would, that doesn’t stop me from worrying. I don’t like the idea of you kids being home alone.” Aunt Catherine said. “Girls, everything tastes delicious.”

“Thank you.” the three of us chorused, and I briefly caught Lauren’s gaze before she hurriedly turned her attention back to her mother.

“Nothing ever happens in Forks, so I don’t think we’ll be dealing with anything dangerous if we stayed home alone for one night.” she pointed out, and part of me wanted to argue that the vampires living on the other side of town might pose a threat if they weren’t vegetarians, but I stayed silent.

“I just have this nagging feeling that something bad will happen to you girls if I leave you by yourselves.” Aunt Catherine insisted. “Michael, what do you think?”

“I think that, if your mother feels so strongly about this, Lauren, you can go spend the night at Jessica’s like you’ve been asking to do for the past month.” my uncle said, turning from my cousin to me. “Alice, would you be able to have a sleepover with Rosalie or whatever it is you girls do these days?”

“Esme actually asked me to join them for dinner tonight, if that’s okay with you guys, so I can ask then. I’m sure that it’ll be fine.” I answered, and they both agreed that I could go to the Cullen house later that day.

“What about me?” Cynthia asked, and I smiled over at her.

“Rosalie’s been asking about you, so you might be able to come with me. Would that be okay?” I asked her, and she smiled widely while nodding.

“Let me know something as soon as you know it, Alice?” my aunt asked. “I assume that you’ll be heading to the house once your appointment at the hospital is finished?”

“Of course, Aunt Catherine, and Carlisle says that he’ll drop your copy of the report on his way home.” I told her, smiling softly even though I knew already that Carlisle and Esme would agree instantly if Jasper had told them about the vision that I’d had the night prior.

When I got to the Cullen house that afternoon, Edward was the one to greet me. He told me that Esme had been thinking to herself all day trying to figure out what I’d painted for her gift, and he was glad that it was all about to end now that I was there. According to him, he’d had to meet me in the garage because Jasper was busy keeping Esme calm so that she wouldn’t try to run into the art studio and pull the sheet away from the canvas herself. I giggled at this as we entered the house, and I had barely stepped into the formal living room when I found myself being pulled into a warm and loving hug.

“Happy Mother’s Day, Mom.” I said as Esme released me, both of us smiling.

“Thank you, sweetheart.” she replied.

“Ready for your present?” I asked, and she nodded enthusiastically.

“I’m so excited to see what it looks like!” she said, and we all went to the art studio.

Inside the studio, everyone gathered in a semi-circle around the covered easel that held Esme’s gift. The only one who had seen even the slightest hint of what it looked like had been Carlisle because he’d been in the studio with me when I’d been outlining everything. Ever so gently, I removed the covering from the easel and took a step back so that everyone could see the painting. I heard the gasps of awe, as I already knew I would, and turned to see everyone looking between the painting and Esme, who looked like she’d be crying if her tear ducts still functioned.

“Oh, sweetheart, it’s beautiful!” she exclaimed, and I didn’t disagree no matter how haughty that sounds.

The painting itself was of Esme, and I’d placed her standing in a vibrant garden looking back over her shoulder. A daisy chain was braided into her caramel hair, and her green peasant top and faded blue jeans only seemed to add to her earthiness. The garden she stood in was filled with Tudor roses, vibrant bluebonnets, soft magnolias, blue violets, red roses, deep purple irises, Pacific rhododendrons, carnations, and sprigs of sagebrush. I had drawn her barefoot, and she looked like the physical embodiment of Mother Nature.

“Why those particular flowers?” Edward asked, and I smiled.

“Well, the Tudor roses are the official flower of England; bluebonnets are the state flower of Texas; magnolias are the state flower of Mississippi; blue violets are for Illinois; red roses are for New York; irises are for Tennessee; rhododendrons are for Washington; the carnations are for Ohio; and the sage brush is for Nevada.” I explained. “I’ve had more than a few visions concerning this family, and each of those flowers represents at least one of us. Mom is Mother Nature, and her family is growing around her in the garden.”

“Who’s Nevada?” Emmett asked, and my smile turned sad.

“Though she’s living a relatively miserable life in Idaho now, that’s where Bree was born.” I told him and Rosalie. “Life hasn’t been easy for her. When she was four, her father murdered her mother in front of her, but he convinced her that it was a dream at the time and that her mother had run off on them. He relocated her to Idaho almost overnight, and she’s a withdrawn child suffering as the new object of his abuse. She’s begun to think that he might’ve actually killed her mother, but she won’t say anything because she fears she’ll end up dead if she confronts him.”

“How soon can we get her away from him?” Rosalie asked, and I shrugged.

“From what I’ve been able to gather, it’s somewhere between two and three years that she joins the family. I don’t think, however, that it’ll be any of us who gets her to Washington from Idaho at the end of the day. Everything I’ve seen suggests that she comes to us as a vampire.” I told my sister, and she swallowed hard.

“I don’t want her to suffer any longer than she has to, Alice.” she said. “What would you do?”

“I’m probably not the best person to ask that question, Rose, at all.” I admitted. “I’ve already had a vision of someone trying to hurt my kids, and my plan is to rip the bitch limb from limb before setting her on fire.”

“Am I allowed to be there when you do this, Darlin’? Just sayin’, I’d love to watch that happen.” Jasper asked, and I giggled.

“If you’re good, I might even let you light the fire.” I teased, and he crossed the room at a speed only vampires are capable of just to kiss me softly.

“Not that I have any room to judge, but why are we letting them commit murder, whose murder is it, and can I also watch?” Emmett asked, making all of us chuckle.

“The Mexican Nightmare is Alice’s stepmother, and she’s got this sick, demented fantasy of turning Alice herself so that she can use Alice’s powers to her own benefit.” Edward told them with a humorless smile. “She also likely expects that Jasper will rejoin her at some point if he hears about her newfound advantage with Alice because she doesn’t know that they’re together.”

“I always knew there were a few screws loose in her head.” Rosalie rolled her eyes.

“Honestly, I thought she was smarter than this.” Emmett said with a sigh. “Jasper was very clear that he wouldn’t rejoin her the last time she showed up, and Mom was very clear that she’d roast Maria over an open flame with an apple in her mouth if she tried it a second time.”

“Power, greed, and lust can drive lesser beings to extremes, so I expect vampires to be no different.” Carlisle said. “If anything, I suspect that Aro would behave similarly if he were to find out about Alice’s abilities.”

“Yeah, but Aro wouldn’t try to take her by force, right?” Edward responded. “He hasn’t come for Jazz or me yet.”

“He’s made you both offers, which you both declined, but Alice’s gift might be enough to finally tip him over the proverbial ledge.” Carlisle said, and I felt the pull of a vision as he spoke. “If I were to tell him, he’d want you all and likely accuse me of trying to usurp him, Marcus, and Caius.”

**The entire family was standing in a snowy clearing, and about twenty other people were with us. Across the clearing from us stood a larger group all dressed in black. Our side was quickly joined by the wolves, and I noticed the way that the largest wolf went straight to Edward, Bella, and their daughter; that one was obviously Jacob, no doubt. A second wolf walked towards Emmett, Rosalie, and Bree, my niece gently stroking the wolf’s ash-brown fur. My family and our friends stood against the red-eyed vampires clad in black, and I had an awful feeling about what was about to happen. Bella rolled her shoulders and closed her eyes for a moment before a near-transparent bubble wrapped itself around us with only hints at its existence showing itself every few seconds in a rippling effect; it reminded me of staring down the road during a heatwave.**

**The shortest of the three who stood in front of the others, but behind a line of nine or ten other vampires who must have been the guard, his hair dark and glossy, gave Carlisle a condescending smile. This, just from what I knew about him, was Aro of the Volturi and Carlisle’s oldest friend. There was little that Aro didn’t know about Carlisle, and what he didn’t know was about to become his own undoing.**

**“ _You must understand why I am here, friend._ ” Aro said, smile still in place.**

**“ _I am not required to force myself to comprehend what will not occur, friend._ ” Carlisle responded, his tone surprisingly cold. “ _We have no desire to hurt you or your coven, but I will not allow you to take my children or my grandchildren._ ”**

**“ _Then you leave me no choice._ ” Aro said, turning briefly to one of his men, a tall and strong vampire to his left. “ _Take them, and start with Alice._ ”**

**The vampire Aro had spoken to sprung into action, running straight at me, but Bella jerked her head back in a short, swift motion and turned her original bubble into a rippling aqua forcefield around our group. The vampire running towards us bounced off it and fell into a heap in the snow. One of the blonde women gathered with us, golden eyes telling me that she was of the Denali Clan, reached out to touch the forcefield and electrified it. The Volturi vampire reached for the shield again, and he twitched on the ground as the electrical pulses shot through his body.**

**“ _What is the meaning of this?_ ” the blond leader of the Volturi asked with a sneer.**

**“ _You’ve underestimated them, Aro._ ” the last of the three leaders said with the faint ghost of a smile.**

**“ _Jane, now._ ” Aro said to the small girl to the front right of him, and the girl turned towards Jasper.**

**“ _Pain._ ” she said, but nothing happened, at least, nothing happened to Jasper.**

**I smirked at the girl, Jane, as Jasper merely narrowed his eyes and reflected all the physical pain that she was trying to place upon him back at her in emotional form. She crumpled into a heap, like the other vampire before her, and the boy beside her turned his hands palms up in an effort to do something to protect her. Edward glared at him, and the boy let out a yell.**

**“ _Aro, he’s in my head! I thought he could only read minds, not speak inside them!_ ” the boy cried out, and Aro looked at my brother in alarm.**

**“ _I did warn you, old friend._ ” Carlisle said, and Aro appeared nervous. “ _My family is not yours to take._ ”**

I blinked, clearing my eyes of the vision, and looked over at Edward. My brother stood before me in a state of shock at what we’d seen, and I knew that Jasper would have to knock us back into reality like he had after the Christmas vision. Once he had, Edward began cackling like a lunatic.

“That was brilliant! How did we get so strong?” he asked, confusing the others. “I didn’t think something like that was possible!”

“It’s possible for our powers to grow, right? Maybe that’s all it was?” I replied. “Who was the woman that electrified Bella’s shield?”

“Bella has a shield?” Emmett asked, intrigued, at the same time that Edward answered my question. “Kate.”

“Alice foresaw Aro attempting to take those of us with additional gifts. Dad wouldn’t let him, so Aro tried to do it by force. He sent Felix first, and Bella conjured a forcefield of some sort to block him; it reminded me of Renata’s shield, but it was different, colorful. Kate electrified the forcefield, and he stupidly tried touching it a second time. Aro asked Jane to use her powers on us, and she started with Jasper who, instead of falling victim to her powers, redirected the pain back at her as emotional instead of physical pain. Alec tried to get involved, but I used telepathy to scare him into backing down instead of protecting his sister. Plus, we had about twenty or so other vampires with us as well as several wolves and a man I didn’t recognize. Did you know him, Alice?” Edward explained, turning to me at the end.

“He looks like someone I knew several years ago, the grandson of the witch I mentioned to Mom, so it might be him. Bella’s friends with his sister, so it would make sense for…Of course! His name is Caleb Scott, so he’s the guy that Bella introduced to Tanya to get her to stop hating Bella for ending up with you!” I answered.

“Tanya’s mate is a witch. Not the most surprising thing to come from Alice’s vision.” Rosalie said with a snort. “Who else was there, and how did we do enough to scare the Volturi?”

“Aro looked scared, especially when Dad told him that his family wasn’t Aro’s for the taking.” I said, and Edward nodded. “He didn’t know about Bella’s powers or how advanced everyone else’s were at that point, Edward’s especially.”

“As for who else was there, all of the wolves, and there were at least fifteen, were there; Jacob was with Bella, me, and our daughter, but another wolf was with Emmett, Rosalie, and Bree. I recognized the Denalis, but Irina wasn’t present; Garrett was also there, with Kate as Alice foretold in her Christmas vision. I want to say that Dad’s friends from Egypt were there, as well as the Irish coven and Alistair, surprisingly enough. Vladimir and Stefan were there, because of course they were, and I saw a few new faces that I don’t recognize at all. I think that Peter and Charlotte were there, but I’d need to see a memory of them from Jazz to confirm.” Edward listed, and I saw Jasper close his eyes in order to conjure a memory of his oldest friends in his mind. “Most definitely them.”

“Well, it sounds like we’ll be making some new friends in the near future.” Esme said, her smile bright and happy. “Of course, that’ll be a problem for down the road. C’mon, now, Alice needs to eat dinner soon.”

While Esme cooked my dinner, telling all of us that we weren’t going to stop her from being a mother on Mother’s Day no matter how hard we tried, I asked everyone about my aunt and uncle’s request. All of them were excited and agreed quickly; they seemed especially happy to have Cynthia over the following night. Edward told me that this was because most of them had little to no experience with small children since their own human lives and felt that my baby sister would be good practice for the three small children that we knew the future held for us.

“We’ll all go out and hunt again after school to make sure that we’re even at our fullest when Cynthia’s here, right, guys?” Emmett said, looking at his wife and brothers, and I smiled gratefully.

“We will.” Edward agreed, and Rosalie nodded.

“I’m not, but that’s mostly because I’ll go out once Alice is asleep tonight so long as someone else is willing to sit with her while I’m gone. Leaving her alone is too big a risk at the moment, so I’m not willing to let that happen.” Jasper said, and all but Carlisle and Esme appeared confused.

“What do you mean?” Rosalie asked, her voice shaky.

“Alice had a vision last night, and not a good one.” Carlisle said, leaning against the counter in front of the sink. “With our best estimates being within a few days before or after today, we now know that Maria’s messenger has found the hunter she was looking for and gotten him to agree to, at the very least, meet with Maria to negotiate the terms of their deal. His mate is going with him for this meeting, but they’re sending the third member of their coven our way to scout the area for vampires with permanent territory.”

“Unfortunately, with as heavily as my scent is present in Alice’s room, this third member of the coven, Laurent, would investigate. Without anyone there to protect her, she and the others in the house are at risk.” Jasper added, and I gently squeezed his bicep.

“I’ll do it.” Emmett offered. “No red-eyed scumbag is gettin’ near my little sister on my watch.”

“Thanks, Em.” I said, smiling over at my bear of a brother, and he smiled back.

Most teenage girls don’t usually want to spend great amounts of time with their brothers, but I’ve never been like most girls my age. I had enjoyed spending time with Emmett, the two of us discussing books until I couldn’t keep my eyes open, and he had a lot of interesting takes on some of my favorite books that had never crossed my mind. While it wasn’t the same as having Jasper there, for the time I was awake while he was hunting and Emmett was with me, I felt safe. Of course, Jasper was less than amused when he returned from his hunt to find me awake and discussing _Northanger Abbey_ with Emmett instead of sleeping.

“I’m just saying that while Thorpe is a tool, General Tilney is way worse.” Emmett was saying as Jasper slipped through the window. “It almost doesn’t even matter that he didn’t kill his wife.”

“I don’t disagree, but I think that Captain Tilney is just as bad as the two of them. He knew that he’d ruin Isabella’s reputation doing what he did, but did he care? No!” I responded, smiling over at Jasper as he stood back and observed the two of us. “Hi, Honey.”

“Hey, Darlin’.” he said as he crossed the room to sit down beside me on the bed. “I didn’t think you’d be awake.”

“Well, I wasn’t until Emmett decided to wake me up from a nightmare.” I admitted, giving Emmett a thankful smile.

“She refused to go back to sleep until you got here, so I decided that we could discuss some classic English literature until you got back.” he told Jasper from his spot at the foot of the bed.

“I’m here now.” Jasper said, and even I could tell that he was trying to say something to Emmett without actually saying it aloud.

“I see that.” Emmett remarked before turning to me. “I’ll see you at school, little sister.”

“See you at school, big brother.” I said, and Emmett leaned in to drop a kiss to the top of my head before climbing out my window and disappearing into the night.

“Was it just a nightmare?” Jasper asked once we were alone, and I shook my head.

“It was a vision, but it was brief and was vastly out of context. Aunt Catherine was crying, and Charlie Swan and Billy Black were trying to comfort her. That was all I saw.” I told him.

“Whatever it is, we’ll be able to handle it.” he said as he slid his boots off, got into bed beside me, and opened his arms for me to curl into his side.

“Promise me something?” I asked, intertwining the fingers of our right hands.

“For you, Darlin’, anything.” Jasper replied.

“Promise me you’ll never leave me for someone else? Promise me that I’ll always be enough for you?” I asked him, and he smiled softly.

“Alice, I promise you that I will never leave you for anyone else. You are the love of my life, my reason for existing, the mother of my unborn children, and the woman I fully intend on marrying once you’re of age. I promise that you will always be enough for me because I can’t imagine growing tired of you. I know I don’t say it aloud much, if only because it’s easier for me to use my gift to show you my feelings, but I love and am in love with you, my Alice.” he told me, and I felt his emotions being projected over my own for a few moments before drowsiness took hold.

“I love and am in love with you, too, Jasper.” I said as I pulled him in for a kiss before laying my head on his chest and allowing myself to fall back asleep in his arms.

I woke a few hours later to Jasper and Rosalie arguing near-silently at the foot of my bed. I rolled my eyes and stared at them until they noticed that I was awake. Jasper noticed first, sensing my annoyance at the scene, and moved back to my side. Rosalie sat down on the end of the bed, and I waited for a response from one of them.

“Good Morning, Darlin’.” Jasper told me before pecking me sweetly on the lips.

“Morning.” I replied. “Should I be concerned?”

“It’s not really a big deal, Alice, honestly.” Rosalie said. “Jasper was just trying to convince me that learning how to fight should be our last resort even though we know that we’re going to need to know how eventually.”

“Not that I’m taking sides in this sibling spat you two are in, but the sooner the rest of the family is trained, honey, the more time and help you’ll have for training Bella and me. Even if we find a way to get around the Volturi problem, Maria will find us eventually.” I said, and Rosalie smirked.

“Thank you, little sister, for that most excellent point.” she said, and Jasper sighed.

“How about this idea? I’ll ask Mom and Dad what they think, and we’ll train if and only if they consent.” he said, and Rosalie shrugged.

“That works for me.” she agreed, her grin triumphant as she headed towards the window. “See you at school!”

School passed in its typical boring fashion as Monday wore on, the most exciting part of the day being mine and Emmett’s discussion of who was the real villain in _Lady Audley’s Secret_ during lunch after Rosalie had snuck away to hunt. When the bell finally rang to release students for the day, I practically skipped outside after going by my locker to do a quick switch of textbooks so I had the necessary materials to do my homework. Jasper had agreed to go with me when I picked Cynthia up from school, but then Emmett had gotten them both into trouble during their Biology II class resulting in the two of them landing themselves in detention; Rosalie had still been chewing Emmett out when I passed them in the hallway after kissing Jasper goodbye, and Edward said that he’d just run home to get a head start on hunting. So, for the first time since I’d had the vision of the nomads Maria was hiring to bring me back to her, I was without my usual vampire bodyguards. I wasn’t the only one to notice this, as Lauren’s friends began making their way towards me.

“Hey, Alice, you’re out here without a babysitter? I don’t think I’ve seen you without a Cullen all day today.” Tyler noted as they reached me, and I snorted.

“They’re not my babysitters.” I told him. “Emmett and Jasper are in detention, Rosalie’s scolding the pair of them, and Edward went home to help his mother with hanging up some new art she just recently acquired.”

“Still, it’s a little weird that none of them let you get too far out of their sight today.” Mike Newton added, and I rolled my eyes.

“In a school this small, how often are any of us out of one another’s sight?” I asked, and Eric Yorkie laughed. “Did Lauren and Jessica already leave?”

“Of course, they’ve left.” Katie said as if it should’ve been obvious. “We wouldn’t be talking to you now if they hadn’t?”

“Katie!” Jennifer hissed, and I looked at all of them confusedly. “Lauren and Jessica said we weren’t supposed to tell her.”

“Okay, what am I not supposed to know about, guys?” I asked, looking at all of them until one, Angela, broke.

“Not that they’re entirely wrong, but Lauren and Jessica think that the guys are socially inept when it comes to making friendly conversation with females, and they don’t want any of the girls getting too close to you because they think one of them still might have a chance with Edward Cullen if one of them is your closest female friend.” she told me, and I chuckled. “Lauren also said you’d probably lose your temper if they asked about the Cullens too much.”

“While I potentially would lose my temper a bit if I was pestered for too long, you guys can all still be my friends. As far as Edward goes, he’s not interested in either of them.” I said, filing the information away for later to pester my brother with in the event he started getting on my nerves.

“How do you know?” Mike asked, but I was saved from answering by the arrival of Rosalie.

“My brother has a type, and neither Stanley nor Mallory fit it.” she said. “He likes average height brunettes with brown eyes who love books and classical music.”

The others were stunned into silence by Rosalie’s presence, and I almost giggled at the absurdity of it all. As I thought about it, I wondered how many of them Rosalie had ever even said a word or two to in the past year-and-a-half since Carlisle had moved the family to Forks; the number couldn’t have been high, and I could only think of one plausible explanation. She intimidated most of them, and those who claimed not to be were either lying about it or jealous.

“We need to get going if we’re picking Cynthia up from school, Alice.” Rosalie said after a few moments passed in silence, and I did giggle this time at the way their slightly-agape mouths snapped shut.

Rosalie wasn’t joking about her going with me to get Cynthia from school. She, in a moment of pure trust, even let me drive instead of taking my keys. Jasper had warned me that Rosalie had a habit of melting around small children, but seeing my sisters meet for the first time gave me a whole new context for this. When we’d gotten back to the Cullen house, we immediately started in on our homework. I got stuck in geometry and had to ask Edward for help, so neither he nor I could help Cynthia with her science homework. To our surprise, mine more than Edward’s, it was Rosalie who sat down to help Cynthia label and explain the parts of the water cycle. They’d just finished the assignment when Jasper and Emmett came up the stairs from the garage.

“-tually, Cynthia, I think that Jasper’s probably the better one to help you with your history report.” I heard Rosalie say as I closed my geometry book.

“What’s this history report supposed to be about, Little Bit?” Jasper asked as he took Edward’s vacated chair, our brother having left for his music room once I’d completed my math homework.

“She’s supposed to write a one-page report on Japanese paper lanterns on this paper lantern themed stationary.” Rosalie said, holding up the piece of paper with a lined paper lantern on it.

“She’s a first grader. When did they start doing reports and learning about Japan?” Emmett asked, confused.

“Japan is just this week’s topic. With it being Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, they’re covering a variety of cultures before the year ends.” Rosalie told him. “As far as writing a history report in first grade, it’s supposed to help the kids learn to express their ideas more clearly.”

“I’ll help Cynthia with her report, Rose, so why don’t you go ask Emmett how detention went?” Jasper said, and Emmett ran up the stairs with his wife right behind him.

“Tell me he didn’t do anything stupid.” I said. “I couldn’t look in on you guys because I was attempting to learn geometry from Edward.”

“Detention itself was fine. It was when we got outside and your cousin’s friends were still all standin’ around and gosspin’ about you and Rose that it all went to hell.” he told me. “Newton really needs to learn when to shut his mouth, and I didn’t bother tellin’ Emmett to not growl at him after what he said.”

“I’m going to the studio now, but I expect to hear what Mike said later, okay?” I said quietly as I stood up, and he smiled as I leaned down to kiss him softly before leaving the room.

That night, Cynthia slept in the guest room typically reserved for Carmen and Eleazar’s visits. When her bedtime came, I tucked her into bed and asked her what she thought of the people I now considered my family. My baby sister smiled at me and said that the Cullens were the best vampires and people she’d ever met. I laughed quietly, though I knew everyone else could hear anyway, and reminded her that Maria had set the bar fairly low. Cynthia giggled as well, and then I kissed her on the forehead before turning out the lights and wishing her sweet dreams. No sooner had I stepped back into the hallway was I confronted by a beaming Rosalie.

“Yes?” I asked cautiously, and she motioned for me to follow her.

“It’s finished, little sister, and not a moment too soon.” she told me as we walked into another bedroom, this one painted a calming gray with pops of yellow throughout, and stopped in front of the door leading into the closet. “Happy belated birthday.”

Rosalie flipped the light switch just inside the closet door, and I felt my jaw drop as the room, for it was too small to be a closet, lit up before me. Stepping inside, I could see that my things were on one side while Jasper’s were on the other. Along a wall and nestled between shoe racks, I found a vanity table where Rosalie had stored all of the makeup that she had bought me in Seattle along with the jewelry and other accessories.

“This is amazing!” I said, trying to look at everything all at once.

“Nice, Rose, now I’ll never see her again!” I heard Jasper chuckle from behind me, and I immediately turned towards him and jumped into his arms.

“Not gonna happen.” I told him. “You promised not to leave, so you’ll just be stuck in here with me.”

“Well, I suppose there could be worse things.” he said with a smile before kissing me, Rosalie walking out and shaking her head despite the smile on her face.

When I got into bed and fell asleep beside Jasper that night, everything was normal. I was content as I snuggled close to him, and he was content to hold me with one arm while using the other to turn pages in his book. This would be why he was probably surprised when I woke up just before sunrise with what must have been a blood-curdling scream.

“Alice, what’s wrong? What did you see, Darlin’?” Jasper asked as he tried calming my heightened emotions.

“It’s my uncle.” I choked out, still trying to convince myself that what I’d seen hadn’t been real. “Uncle Michael’s dead.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Show of hands if you saw that ending coming? Hope you enjoyed this chapter, sweets! Stay tuned!


	7. Wait For It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Life doesn't discriminate/Between the sinners and the saints/It takes and it takes and it takes./And we keep living anyway/We rise and we fall and we break/We fall and we make our mistakes./And if there's a reason I'm still alive/When so many have died/Then I'm willin' to- then I'm willin' to-"  
>  -"Wait For It," Leslie Odom Jr., Lin-Manuel Miranda

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: There are a few Easter Eggs and sweet moments in this chapter, and I swear that Bella will be in the next one, sweets!

That morning, more so than nearly any other morning I’d experienced, was the one to change my life the most by that point in my life. As much as I had wanted it to have been false, what I had seen had been the truth. Uncle Michael had been driving home from Port Angeles that morning when he’d stopped to help Waylon Forge, a local man recently retired from the police department, get his boat into the river. As he was walking back to his car, my uncle had been ambushed by Laurent, the third member of the nomadic coven I’d seen in my visions. Laurent had continued running west, but his path was quickly blocked by the wolves who, after a text from my phone courtesy of Jasper, had wasted no time at all hunting down the lone red-eyed vampire. They weren’t able to kill him, the wolves’ ability to climb trees proving next to non-existent, so he escaped back towards the East to regroup with his coven.

Charlie pulled Lauren, Cynthia, and me out of school before our morning bells even rang. He took us back to Aunt Catherine’s and broke the news as gently as he could. Cynthia and Lauren bawled, and I put up a good fake-cry to mask my lack of surprise. Charlie told us that, while he was staying back to lead the investigation, he’d made several calls before coming to get the three of us. Sam was driving Billy Black up to Seattle to get Aunt Catherine before she tried driving herself home and walked straight into the stuff of nightmares. Since the county’s prosecuting attorney would have to drive down from Port Angeles to lead the investigation, technically, Carlisle had been called in to handle my uncle’s body. Esme had tasked Edward with gathering my assignments for the next few days, and she had pulled Jasper out of school for the day before driving to Aunt Catherine’s house to aid Charlie in helping us three girls deal with the morning’s events.

Despite the fact that I knew I should talk to Jasper about my feelings before they consumed him, I asked him to stay with Cynthia before asking Esme to follow me upstairs. I knew that Jasper would hear me regardless, but I didn’t need to hear rational thought accompanied by artificial calm. I needed a mother.

“Is this my fault?” I asked. “Would this have even happened if I hadn’t grabbed Cynthia and ran?”

“Oh, sweetheart!” Esme said as she pulled me into her arms. “No, of course it’s not your fault!”

“Maria sent for their coven because of me. She’s hiring them to track me.” I said. “So, this means that this _is_ my fault.”

“No, Alice, it doesn’t.” she said, leading me over to the bed and sitting down beside me. “Laurent could have fed on anyone in this town or any other town he passed through on his way here. Your uncle just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“Mom…” I couldn’t find the words to finish my sentence, so I cried into Esme’s shoulder instead.

Aunt Catherine didn’t come back to the house. She had been concerned, Sam told me when we later spoke, when he and Billy knocked on her hotel room door in Seattle and told her that there was an emergency back home. They took her back to La Push after a call from Charlie told them that they hadn’t finished clearing the scene even though it was almost dusk. So, in an effort to try to ease breaking the news of her husband’s death, Charlie met them at Billy’s house and told her. When he showed back up at Aunt Catherine’s house, he said that my aunt had sobbed until she fell asleep and would be spending the night at Billy’s; after very little debate, Lauren asked Charlie to take her to where her mother was, and Esme agreed to keep Cynthia and me until Aunt Catherine returned home. Despite knowing that the four of us were safe between the rez and the Cullen house, I couldn’t sleep that night. Carlisle found me in the kitchen when he got home near midnight. The others had gone hunting again, but I knew that they were really trying to track Laurent.

“Can’t sleep?” he asked, and I snorted.

“No one else does, so why should I?” I answered flatly.

“Poppet, would you like some tea?” Carlisle asked, not waiting for me to respond before putting on the kettle.

“Mom told you what I said earlier, didn’t she?” I asked him, and he nodded.

“You’re blaming yourself because you’ve become used to being the one blamed when things go wrong.” he said, a knowing look in his eyes. “It isn’t a pleasant feeling, and it can take years to work through this on your own.”

“That sounds like wisdom gained through personal experience.” I told him, and he smiled sadly.

“My birth father wasn’t the nicest man about town.” he said, telling me his story. “He was an Anglican pastor, and he was the leader amongst a group of other pastors who would hunt down supposed vampires, werewolves, and witches to ‘exterminate sin’ in large-scale raids. My mother died in childbirth, leaving me as my father’s only son, and he expected a great deal of me. Though I have my faith, and always have held it close, I never desired to join the Church as he did. Even then, I was more of an intellectual and academic than a clergyman. When I was nine, he took me to see the beheading of King Charles I, something that makes me feel ill to think about to this day. After that, it became my responsibility to make sure that my father’s kit for raids was always packed and well stocked. Whenever a raid didn’t go as planned, he blamed it on my less-than-adequate packing skills. When I was sixteen, he began taking me along on the raids with him. The number of innocent people I saw die due to my father’s paranoia left me deeply saddened, and I took it as a chance to make a real difference when, against my wishes, I joined the Church and took over the raids from my father when I was twenty. I didn’t conduct as many raids, and my father considered that a failure on my part. The last time I saw him before my change, I showed him my research where I’d been tracking a coven living in the London sewers. He was excited that I was going to lead this raid, proud even. The night of the raid, I ended up in a scuffle with one of the vampires in the coven. He was at his most dangerous, having had no blood in several weeks, and attacked. He meant to kill me, out of necessity only, but he didn’t finish the job before the sounds of the raid party frightened him off and left me with just enough human blood in my body to allow for the change. I hid myself in a potato cellar for three days, knowing what must be happening to me, just waiting for the agony to end.”

“What happened when you woke up after the change?” I asked as he set a yellow mug filled with hot chamomile tea in front of me.

“I tried various methods of killing myself. I was raised to believe that vampires were hell-demons who existed in a perpetual state of damnation that would only end with the vampire’s return to hell upon its death. Nothing worked, and I secluded myself in a cave I stumbled across in the forest. I was so thirsty, so much in need of blood that I attacked a herd of deer. After that, I realized that I could survive off of animal blood instead; once I had my thirst under control, I took the opportunity to return to my studies. Eventually, I had to leave England and found myself traveling Europe before settling in Italy for twenty years. Though Aro is an excellent conversationalist, he lacks true compassion and empathy. He has never understood why I, now we, don’t drink from humans, and I don’t believe that he ever will.” Carlisle said, smiling down at the countertop as he said this. “When I left Italy, I traveled here, to the so-called New World, and went through medical school. One of my first jobs as a practicing physician was when I met your mother.”

“Mom says that she would’ve run away with you that day if you’d asked her.” I remarked, thinking back on the day Esme told me what parts of her story I hadn’t seen.

“I was tempted to ask her to, but sixteen was much too young.” he told me, looking up at me as he detailed our family’s more recent history. “Though, I am glad that I waited to turn her. If I hadn’t, there’s a chance that I’d have never gotten to Edward in time. Without Edward, there would have been no reason for my relocation to where your mother was hiding from her first husband. From there, we relocated to Rochester once Esme learned to control her thirst, and that’s where we gained Rosalie, who brought us Emmett in turn when we relocated to Gatlinburg; we spent a significant portion of the forties relocating before either of your brothers could be drafted, so I consider my finding Jasper in Pittsburg in 1951 as an act of divine intervention. Bringing him into the family, though it took fifty years, brought us you, Poppet.”

“But can I stay?” I asked before I could stop myself, and Carlisle fixed me with an intense stare that dared me to look away.

“Alice, do you know what happened to keep me from getting home until just a bit ago?” he asked, and I shook my head so he continued. “I was called to Charlie Swan’s house where Billy Black and Sam Uley were waiting. I called Edward to ask him to accompany me, but he asked that I take Jasper instead. Now, Charlie has no idea what we were really discussing, as he spent most of his time on the phone with the district attorney, but what we’ve decided is that the Tribal Council of Elders is going to make an exception and tell Catherine about their legends and, to a degree, ours. Once she’s had time to process that, Sam and Billy will bring her here to talk with your mother and I about out family’s habits. With any luck at all, your mother and I will get Catherine to sign over custody of you to us, as Richard signed and faxed over the custody paperwork for Catherine this morning, and then we can get the adoption process started. Jasper is going to get in contact with his documents man to obtain the proper proof of Edward and Emmett’s adoptions to show that we are fully capable of providing a safe and stable home for you. Whether you get to stay here has never been in question, Poppet, and don’t you ever think that it even could be.”

Carlisle had been right. Aunt Catherine had come to the house the following Sunday afternoon. She had made arrangements for Lauren and Cynthia to stay with Charlie until the start of summer break as she was still not able to bring herself to go inside her own home. Ever since Uncle Michael’s death, Aunt Catherine had been staying at Billy Black’s place; losing his wife in a car accident four years earlier, he understood her pain better than any of her other friends. I was happy that she had someone she could talk to who understood her, and she appeared comforted by his presence when she came to the house. If the way she reacted to the reality of vampires, and vegetarian vampires, was any indication of how my aunt had handled learning about the wolves, she was open to believing anything at that point, including the fact that my stepmother was the same vampire who had initially sired Jasper.

“So, having a coven, sorry, _family_ of vampires adopt Alice is the best option for her safety that we have? This is based on what exactly?” she asked, more concerned for me than the fact that she was in a room full of vampires.

“Well, for starters, I had a vision on the flight here that told me that I was going to be adopted into this family. Since then, I’ve had several more visions that show me being here.” I answered.

“As far as safety goes, assuming that this tracker Maria hired his tracking Alice’s scent specifically, it’ll be harder to find her if her scent is masked by something else. While the Pack could do this in theory, there are only three of us at the moment, and we have our own lives as well. Okay, Paul doesn’t, but he’s also got the worst temper. He’ll mellow out whenever he imprints, may God let it be soon.” Sam added, chuckling about his packmate’s predicament.

“There’s just not enough manpower to keep an eye on all of you, Cathy.” Billy said. “Maria’s probably giving the tracker and his coven your name and listing you as a potential threat because you know what happened to your sister. You, with both that and having custody of Alice, are a threat to her lifestyle if you ever told the police what you know. You need to have someone protecting you just as much as any of the girls.”

“Vampires or not, Alice’s visions are one of the least weird things about her as far as any of us are concerned.” Edward piped up, and my aunt chuckled.

“Telepathy?” she asked him.

“Sort of; right now, I can only read minds. But, according to Alice’s visions, one day soon I’ll be able to project my thoughts back to someone else as well.” Edward told her. “You would always be welcome to visit so long as we have about a heads-up, so don’t worry about that.”

“That doesn’t make this any easier, I assure you.” my aunt said, a teasing light hiding in her eyes as she looked over and me before continuing. “Though I will admit that this is all strange and sudden, this is where Alice belongs.”

Once the paperwork was signed, I became a permanent resident of the Cullen house. The most difficult thing out of the whole process hadn’t been not seeing my sister every day, as I knew that Cynthia was safe with Lauren at Charlie’s under the watchful eyes of the Uley Pack, but rather the waiting. I knew that the nomads could be arriving at any point, but no vision of a firm date would come no matter how hard I wished. The worry wouldn’t subside, instead existing in the back of my mind every day.

A few days after school let out for the summer, my bedroom door opened to reveal an excited looking Rosalie leaning against the doorframe. I set my sketchbook to the side as she stepped into the room, curious as to what she was up to this time. She rushed over to me and pressed a long, thin jewelry box into my hands. I opened the box and blinked in surprise at what lay inside. Strung on a velvet choker was a small, ovular pendant with a familiar engraving. Every member of the Cullen family had this crest on something. Carlisle’s was his wedding ring, Esme’s was a bracelet, and each of the boys had both a wrist cuff and a watch that they swapped out depending on the occasion. Rosalie’s was a locket on a long chain that hung down to just above her breasts, and I thought it quite fitting that she, the tallest sister, had the longer chain whereas I, the smallest sister, would be wearing mine on the velvet band around my neck.

“It just came in this morning, and I had to fight the boys to be the one to give this to you.” my sister said as I took the choker from the box.

“I love it!” I told her, and she grinned.

“Put it on, put it on, put it on!” she urged, so I did if only to make Rosalie less hyperactive.

“Happy now?” I teased, and she laughed.

“It might be another week or two before the paperwork is finalized, but you’re officially one of us now. If you’ve ever needed any further proof that you’re my little sister, there you go.” she said, hugging me.

“Thanks, Rose.” I said as she pulled away.

“You’re welcome, but now you need to get dressed. Mom and Dad have an announcement to make, and we’re just waiting on you and Edward; he’s in the shower, cleaning up after losing his fight with Emmett.” she said, and we both chuckled.

“I thought I’d woken up to the sounds of our brother getting his ass kicked.” I said, and she shrugged.

“They were arguing over which Beatles song is the best, and Mom told them to take it outside before her furniture was destroyed.” Rosalie said before leaving the room. “Hurry up!”

When I got downstairs, all of my family members except for Edward were in the kitchen. Rosalie was perched at the end of the island in one of the barstools with Emmett standing behind her. Carlisle was leaning against the sink while Esme plated what was obviously my breakfast. Jasper stood with his back against the single strip of wall separating the kitchen from the family room, his expression an amused one. As I sat down at the island, he sat down beside me. Esme slid my breakfast across the countertop towards me, and I thanked her before eating. I was about halfway through when Edward finally joined us.

“I stand by what I said.” he said to Emmett before taking Jasper’s former spot along the wall.

“Noted.” Emmett responded with a grin.

“Boys.” Esme warned, but she was smiling as well.

“Now that we’re all here, your mother and I have decided something.” Carlisle told us, and I felt the unconscious pull of a vision.

**It was a cloudy day, the kind that held the threat of rain, the seven of us were standing in front of a revolving globe with one word of text wrapped around it: UNIVERSAL. A flash from a camera went off, and then an older woman, hair a silvery gray, walked over to us. She handed Carlisle a camera, waited for him to approve the picture on the screen, and told him and Esme what a beautiful family they had once he’d approved it.**

**“ _Thank you._ ” Carlisle told her. “ _Our youngest joined the family a few months ago, and we felt that this was the best way to celebrate._ ”**

“We’re going to Universal Studios?” Edward and I asked together, causing our parents to chuckle while the other three gaped in surprise.

“When?” Emmett, Jasper, and Rosalie added.

“We’ll be going in a couple of weeks, as soon as Alice’s adoption papers arrive, and we’ll stay for five days.” Esme told us.

“What about the weather?” Rosalie asked, and I decided to put my focus on answering her question.

“Surprisingly, it’s overcast that whole week. Rain is almost a daily occurrence.” I told her as varying scenes of our trip played in my mind.

“In that case, meet me in the garage when you’re done eating. We have some shopping to do.” she responded, smiling happily.

Our family vacation had been a major success, and there were a lot of souvenirs to prove it. I smiled to myself as I woke up the morning of the first day of the new school year to see Jasper in the bed beside me wearing his Thing 4 t-shirt. He noticed that I was awake and set his book on the nightstand before leaning down and giving me a good-morning kiss. This had quickly become my favorite part of the day once I’d moved into the house permanently. Though I was well aware of exactly how Jasper felt about me, these little moments of open affection were less frequent with us than with other couples, Rosalie and Emmett for example, who were always openly affectionate. Words and physical gestures would never be able to communicate his emotions as clearly as his gift, and it was always the most amazing feeling whenever Jasper used his gift to show me exactly how he felt, but sometimes the physical gestures were just nice to have.

“Good mornin’, Darlin’.” he said as we broke from our kiss. “First day of school.”

“I don’t wanna go.” I lamented. “We’ll be apart all day.”

“It won’t be all day, Alice.” he reminded me. “Plus, you can’t meet Bella if you don’t go back to school.”

“Bella won’t be here for another several months.” I reminded him.

“What about all those new outfits you and Rose bought just for wearing to school?” he asked, and I sighed.

“Fine.” I relented, and he chuckled.

As far as the citizens of Forks knew, Edward had turned sixteen on June 20th, and he was all too happy to drive his Volvo to and from school. With four functioning cars between the five of us that we could take to school each day, Esme stepped in to give us a rotation schedule. Given Edward’s determination to drive his car, Mondays were assigned to him and Rosalie; thus, on our first day of school, the boys loaded up in Edward’s Volvo S40 while Rose and I took her BMW M3 convertible. Under the agreement, Jasper and I would take my car on Tuesdays while Edward and Rosalie rode in the Jeep with Emmett, and we would continue alternating from there. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked for us.

Arriving at school wasn’t any different than it had been for the last few weeks of the previous school year. I was relieved that Edward was in my homeroom as most people were still too nervous even after two years to approach my family and were more than willing to leave me alone so long as my brother was near. It also helped that Edward knew how to distract others from seeing my face in the event that I was pulled into a vision. He’d gained practice over the summer as I’d had frequent visions of Maria’s plans. Whatever had happened to Laurent and his coven, they had neither started towards Forks nor reported back to Maria, and she was growing increasingly restless. She had sent several of her more highly skilled spies out to search for them, and we had been informed by Jasper’s best friend Peter and his mate Charlotte that Maria still hadn’t found the trio after they had ran into a few of the spies on their way North upon their return from South America.

In homeroom that day, Edward kept people distracted by answering questions about his car when I felt the pull of a vision and cried out mentally for his attention. **I could see a dark, crisp October night before me. A tall, lanky man walked up the path to our house. His eyes were a brilliant ruby color, and his lips seemed to be stuck in a perpetual smirk. He reached the front door, knocked, and waited for someone to answer. Esme, dressed in a Pan Am style flight attendants costume, opened the door with a fond smile.**

**“ _Trick or Treat!_ ” the man said with a chuckle, and Esme hugged him.**

**“ _Garrett, it’s wonderful to see you._ ” she said as Carlisle, dressed in a pilot’s uniform, joined them at the door.**

**“ _Hello, old friend._ ” Carlisle greeted him, hugging the man as well.**

**“ _I take it that my visit isn’t the surprise I was intending._ ” Garrett said, and my parents nodded.**

**“ _We’ve recently adopted again, Jasper’s mate, and she’s special like Jasper and Edward._ ” my mother said. “ _Alice is the best thing that’s ever happened to Jasper; he’s never been as happy as he is now._ ”**

**“ _She’s also human, for now, so I hope this won’t present a problem for you._ ” my father added, his gaze almost daring Garrett to say otherwise.**

**“ _Wait,_ _Jasper’s found his mate? I’m glad for him._ ” Garrett said, surprised. “ _Though, that would explain the scent of human around here that none of your other houses have had._ ”**

**“ _Alice and Rosalie decided to throw a Halloween party after the school’s Halloween Bash was cancelled due to an early senior prank._ ” Esme explained. “ _They’d already bought their costumes and didn’t want them going to waste._ ”**

**“ _Our cousins from Denali even came down to be here for the party._ ” Carlisle added with a knowing tone. “ _Join us?_ ”**

**“ _I’m already here, aren’t I?_ ” Garrett agreed before following my parents into the house where, as Esme has said, a party was in full swing.**

**I saw Lauren and her friends amongst the party goers, everyone in costume, and then I saw Rosalie and Emmett talking with a dark-haired couple I knew to be Carmen and Eleazar from our cousin-coven. Rosalie and Emmett were dressed as a doctor and a slutty nurse; by which, of course, I mean that Rosalie was dressed in scrubs and a white coat with a stethoscope around her neck while Emmett was wearing tight scrubs that showcased the sheer size of my bear of a brother’s muscles. The scrub top’s sleeves had been removed, and the little Red Cross pin was on his breast pocket. Carmen and Eleazar, dressed as Zorro and Elena, tensed as they caught a whiff of Garrett’s scent. Emmett merely looked up and offered the newcomer a smile and a wave before Garrett was steered towards the kitchen where Edward, dressed as Maverick from _Top Gun_ , was talking with a woman in a rather revealing She-Ra costume who I knew had to be Tanya about Bella’s upcoming arrival in the near future. A little ways off from the two of them, I saw Kate, Irina, and Elliot, each identifiable based upon how they were standing as Kate had an arm protectively around Elliot while her sister merely stared out the window. Irina was dressed as a fairy, setting her apart from Kate and Elliot who were dressed as Padme Amidala from _Attack of the Clones_ and Luke Skywalker from _A New Hope_ respectively. I discovered what Irina was so intently staring at when her gaze shifted towards the back door as Jasper and I walked inside dressed as Snow White and the Prince.**

**“ _Sorry we’re late!_ ” I called as we crossed the room to where our parents were standing with our new guest. “ _Cynthia wanted to make sure she went to every possible house before she and Seth went back to Aunt Catherine’s, and we changed out of the Alice and Mad Hatter costumes before we came home._ ”**

**“ _She was the most adorable Queen of Hearts out there, and Seth was a perfect White Rabbit, if I do say so myself._ ” Jasper added. “ _I think we made quite the group before the costume change._ ”**

**“ _This must be Alice._ ” Garrett said, and Jasper reflexively tightened his arms around me. “ _I can see what you were talking about, Esme, she is good for him._ ”**

**“ _They’re sickeningly adorable with how in love they are, but it’s a good look on Jazz after all these years of self-loathing and depression._ ” Kate said as she turned to introduce herself and her son to Garrett. “ _I’m Kate Denali, and this is my son, Elliot, and my younger sister, Irina. My older sister, Tanya, is over there with Edward._ ”**

**“ _Garrett._ ” he said as the vision ended.**

Blinking, I returned to the present to see Edward looking at me with an amused expression. I couldn’t tell which part of the vision had caused his expression, so I listed different things off in my head until he indicated that it had been Emmett’s costume as well as him actually having to tell Tanya about Bella to get her to back off once and for all. Looking down at my schedule, which Edward had slipped onto my desk while I was in the vision so it looked like I was focused on that, I saw that my first class was still art. I hoped that Angela would still be in the class with me, and a brief nod from my brother told me that she would be; swapping my schedule with Edward’s, I noted that we shared not only our homeroom but also our Algebra II Trig, English, and P.E. classes as well.

“I’ve got to get to AP Psych, but I’ll see you second period, Al.” he said as the bell rang, and I nodded as we walked out into the hallway.

“See you then, Ed.” I replied, the strangeness of being without any of my family members lifting only slightly after I began settling into the familiarity of sitting in my art class beside Angela.

Two months into the school year, the senior prank I had heard about in my vision but hadn’t seen came to fruition. Above every exterior door to the school, the seniors partaking in the prank had secured a flying skeleton that would swoop down at whoever opened the door first. Harmless as it sounded, the prank became deserving of the punishment it got when a bucket of either navy blue or gold paint was attached to each skeleton. Thanks to the heightened senses of my family, we were able to avoid the mess and maintain the pristine condition of our outfits that I had so painstakingly put together. Others, like Tyler and Mike, were not so lucky. Principal Greene had called everyone into the gym to formally cancel the Halloween Bash when he opened the back exterior door into the office that morning only to get splattered in a sparkling gold paint. As everyone filed out of the gym in disappointment, my siblings and I shared a look. Rosalie and I had filled out the invitations over the last week, and we were all going to pick up our costumes after school that day. All we were waiting for now was to see how many people actually came to our party just for the sheer curiosity factor of no one at school outside of our family ever having seen it.

That night, while Rosalie experimented with curling my hair for my Snow-White costume, the boys snuck around town with the invitations, secretly slipping them underneath the windshield wipers of our classmates’ cars or into their mailboxes. Esme told us how adorable she found the whole thing, and she had decided to help out by taking charge of the decorating. Carlisle wisely elected to stay out of party planning by picking up a few extra shifts at the hospital and leaving his contribution to allowing Rosalie to use one of his stethoscopes for her costume. He even asked us to call the cousins to invite them, showing how little involvement he wanted in the party planning business.

Having a party on a Sunday was a risky move, but as it was Halloween day, Rosalie and I had planned it for then regardless. Once the initial setup was done, Jasper and I left to take Cynthia out for Trick-or-Treating while Aunt Catherine hosted Charlie, the Blacks, and the Clearwaters for that night’s Sunday Night Football game. Leah, the older of the two Clearwater children, was at a party on the rez, but twelve-year-old Seth was at my aunt’s with his parents. I offered to take him with us, and, after some encouragement from Billy, Sue and Harry agreed. I had anticipated this and quickly dressed the two children as the Queen of Hearts and the White Rabbit; the two adult women in the house were sure to capture as many pictures of the four of us as they could manage. Towards the end of Trick-or-Treating, little Seth turned to Jasper and said something surprising.

“Most people on the rez don’t like your family, Jasper, but Sam says that you’re okay. Leah says that everyone else is probably right if Sam thinks differently, but she’s also bitter because he broke up with her and started seeing our cousin, Emily.” he said. “I think I believe Sam more than my sister.”

“Well, thank you for telling me this, Seth.” Jasper responded, mildly shocked.

“Cynthia’s said a lot about you guys during the summer, and I trust her just like I trust Sam.” the boy said with a shrug, and my sister giggled.

“What’s so funny, Little Bit?” Jasper asked, and Cynthia responded by taking my hand in her own and squeezing.

One aspect of our family’s psychic abilities that every female in the family knew about but only used when necessary was the ability to share our visions with one another. As my sister took my hand, I saw flashes of her growing up with Seth as a constant presence. I didn’t think anything of it until she showed me Seth phasing into a large, gangly sandy-colored wolf before glancing back at Cynthia and following the rest of the pack into the forest. Everything after that made perfect sense. I let go of her hand once I understood, and she smiled at me.

“I’ll tell him later, Cynth.” I promised her, and she nodded before skipping back up to fall into stride with Seth.

“He’ll be a cute little wolf in a few years, and at least he’s got taste.” I whispered to Jasper, and he chuckled quietly as we reached my aunt’s house.

On the way home, I reminded Jasper that Irina would be looking for us when we got there. He rolled his eyes before telling me that Irina was upset with him for not talking Kate out of adopting Elliot because Irina felt that having a human in the house was a potential danger. When it had been temporary, Irina hadn’t had the slightest problem, but anything permanent earned a different reaction from the youngest of the Denali sisters. I laughed when he said this and then made it a point to kiss him on our way into the house.

“Sorry we’re late!” I called as we crossed the room to where Carlisle and Esme were standing with Garrett. “Cynthia wanted to make sure she went to every possible house before she and Seth went back to Aunt Catherine’s, and we changed out of the Alice and Mad Hatter costumes before we came home.”

“She was the most adorable Queen of Hearts out there, and Seth was a perfect White Rabbit, if I do say so myself.” Jasper added. “I think we made quite the group before the costume change.”

“This must be Alice.” Garrett said, and Jasper reflexively tightened his arms around me. “I can see what you were talking about, Esme, she is good for him.”

“They’re sickeningly adorable with how in love they are, but it’s a good look on Jazz after all these years of self-loathing and depression.” Kate said as she turned to introduce herself and her son to Garrett. “I’m Kate Denali, and this is my son, Elliot, and my younger sister, Irina. My older sister, Tanya, is over there with Edward.”

“Garrett.” he said, peering over at Elliot for a moment before returning his attention to Kate. “You have a human child?”

“I’m gay, and my bio parents threw me out when I told them. Mom found me wandering on my own and decided to take me in herself instead of letting me freeze to death since it was a remote area of Alaska in February.” Elliot explained, looking between Garrett and me. “Aunt Esme says I have you to thank for knowing that I won’t be alone forever?”

“I can’t give you any specifics, but your future is currently very bright.” I said as the fourteen-year-old beamed.

The party was already in full swing by the time Jasper and I had gotten home, so it was easy enough for us to jump right in without it feeling awkward. I got introduced to the rest of the cousins officially, and Edward was keeping me updated on what our classmates were thinking. I’d seen Lauren and Jessica, the two of them dressed as Marilyn Monroe and Cinderella respectively, as well as their respective dates, a zombified Tyler and a Prince Charming Mike, along with Eric dressed in a Starfleet Command Gold uniform, but I hadn’t seen Angela with them.

“She said she’d be here, but she also said that she had a date already when I asked her out, so I don’t know if either of those statements was true.” Eric told me when I asked if any of them had seen her yet.

“Is that her?” Jasper asked me a second later, gesturing towards the couple who had just been let in by Edward.

I had to do a double take when I saw her, but Jasper had been correct. Angela, usually dressed in either a more conservative or athletic fashion, was almost an entirely different person in her shiny gold and green mermaid costume. Beside her, Ben Cheney was dressed like a pirate and looked genuinely happy to be her date. Edward sent them in my direction, and Angela and I were quick to compliment one another’s costumes.

“You look every bit a real princess.” she told me.

“And that outfit is doing wonders for your legs.” I told her, the both of us giggling.

“I’m just glad that I didn’t let my mother convince me to wear heels.” Angela said, and I agreed with her.

“You’re tall enough without them; you’d never be able to dance the night away in them here!” I teased, taking my leave as Carlisle called my name.

I hurried over, and he motioned for me to follow him out onto the back deck. When we got outside, Esme was holding the phone up to her ear and nodding along with whatever the person on the other end was saying. She smiled at me and motioned for me to sit with her at the patio table. Once I’d settled, she handed me the phone.

“Hello?” I answered, slightly nervous.

“ _It’s good to hear your voice, too, sugar._ ” the woman on the other end said, and I felt relieved.

“GG, how’d you figure out where I was?” I asked the old witch, smiling as I heard her familiar laughter.

“ _This old woman’s got more than a few tricks up her sleeves._ ” she told me. “ _You’re where you belong, finally, and I couldn’t be happier for you if I tried._ ”

“Thanks, GG, but I’ve got the sense that you called to tell me more than just that.” I replied.

“ _Right as always, sugar. We had a couple of nomads come through the city recently, well, back towards the end of May, beginning of June. I heard them talkin’ about vampires in the Olympic Sound area, and about trackin’ you, so I might’ve done a bit of modifying to their memories. It’s nothin’ permanent, nothin’ can be when it comes to a vampire’s memory, but it’ll hold out for at least a good six or seven months unless somethin’ else triggers any related memory to you and your family._ ” she admitted, and I realized that this would be why the nomadic coven had vanished from my visions over the summer.

“So, by the time they remember, Bella should be here.” I said, mostly to myself even though I knew everyone in my family heard it.

“ _Bella?_ _Maddie’s Bella?_ ” the old witch asked.

“My brother, Edward, she’s his mate.” I told her.

“ _I told that girl she’d end up a vampire if she didn’t stop doin’ so much research into ‘em._ ” she said with a chuckle.

“You never told me that.” I said.

“ _I never needed to, Alice. You already knew your fate when we met._ ” she told me, and I knew that she was right.

“Speaking of my fate, I better get back to him.” I said as I ended the call. “Thanks, Gwen, for everything.”

“ _Anytime, sugar. All you have to do is call._ ” she said, and then there was the tell-tale click of a disconnect.

Garrett and the cousins had all decided to stay for a little longer once the party had wrapped up and all the humans who weren’t supposed to be there had gone. Rosalie and Kate had changed out of their costumes fairly quickly after the last guest had left, the two of them going hunting together so that my sister could formally apologize to our cousin for her initial reaction to Elliot’s adoption. Carlisle left for his overnight shift at the hospital, and Edward had decided to go hunting with Emmett after our brother had offered. Eleazar and Carmen asked Esme where they could help in the post-party clean-up, so she sent them to take down the decorations in the library downstairs. Irina volunteered to help with washing the dishes, and Garrett, Tanya, and Elliot joined Jasper and me in the family room where I’d put in one of my favorite Halloween movies _Practical Magic_. The Owens sisters had just been awakened by the sound of the aunts making Midnight Margaritas when Garrett asked a question that I hadn’t even had an answer to myself despite the number of times I’d asked Jasper.

“I was upstairs earlier, looking for a moment of peace without partying teenage humans, and I noticed the bedroom setups you guys have. Edward said that you and Alice share a room, but how can you manage that without getting overwhelmed by her scent?” he asked, and Jasper pressed the pause button.

“First, I paused it so I wouldn’t be talkin’ over one of her favorite movies.” he answered, starting with the confused look on Tanya and Elliot’s faces before moving on to Garrett’s original question. “Second, I’m not entirely sure how to explain it. I’ve never had even the slightest desire for Alice’s blood, and she actually makes being around other humans easier for me. She makes me feel like less of a monster.”

“I told you before, you never have to be like that again.” I said softly, lifting my chin up from where my head rested on his chest just enough to look him in the eyes. “And you’re not a monster. I thought we’d already established that much?”

“You established it, and I let you believe it.” Jasper responded, and I smirked up at him.

“Then I guess I’ll just have to keep believing it until you believe it, too.” I said, my eyes never once leaving his. “I give up about as well as I share.”

“Kate’s right.” Tanya said after a moment or two had passed. “You guys are sickeningly adorable.”

“I’ll admit, I don’t usually see couples so deeply in love, but it’s nice to see that this does exist.” Garrett added. “I think the same thing about Carlisle and Esme as well as Rosalie and Emmett.”

“I didn’t take you for the hopeless romantic type, Garrett.” Tanya said, and he shrugged.

“When you’ve seen as many relationships destroyed by the pettiness or ambitiousness of humans as I have, you learn to cherish and cultivate every relationship you have.” he said sagely. “My visit tonight came about because I realized that I’d be passing through the area on my way back from Canada and that I hadn’t spoken with anyone here for a while.”

“Garrett and I are more alike in some respects than I am with anyone else in the family.” Jasper explained. “Though his was mostly accidental, both of us were born into this life from war. It isn’t easy to break from a soldier’s habits, and sometimes the desire to take up arms to defend those who can’t defend themselves has a call stronger than any bloodlust. Unfortunately, answering that call is setting yourself up for the eventual end of the fight that almost always ends with more lives needlessly lost than there should’ve ever been.”

“The worst is when it’s over something as ridiculous as who can love who. I don’t even see why it should be a question as to whether men should be able to love men the same way that other men love women, and the same for women, when there are much more pressing matters that should be dealt with instead.” Garrett added. “I mean, one of the best men I ever knew was very clearly, at least to those of us who knew him personally, equally in love with his wife and his best friend; this was, of course, not something considered normal during the Revolutionary War and was a great risk on the part of both Alexander and John. Things changed for Alex, part of him died when he lost John shortly after the British surrendered, and he was never the same afterwards. When we discussed it after both men had passed, my friend Gilbert was always sure that Betsey not only knew but was also the only competent one in that strange, triangle-relationship, but we could never get the three of them to admit it since two of them would’ve been put to death if anyone else found out about the affair.”

“Didn’t you die in the war?” Tanya asked, and Garrett nodded.

“Oh, I did, but I’ve always taken a very liberal approach to the Volturi’s rules. I never told my friends what happened to me, and they knew better than to ask. I believe wholeheartedly that most of them were smart enough to figure it out in the end, but I refused to give confirmation in their best interests. Besides, they’ve all been dead for close to two-hundred years, so what can the Volturi do about it after this much time has gone by without incident. Not to mention the fact that they knowingly looked the other way for this one family in Malta because Aro wanted to recruit one of the descendants as his personal bodyguard. Luca was turned around 400 B.C., and he never once thought of leaving his human family behind once he realized what he was. He stayed, acted as their protector, and accepted one family member every other century or so as a companion who would help him protect the human family. His descendant, Makenna, told me that they like to think of Luca as the family’s personal patron saint. He turned her during World War II, and she asked his permission to leave the nest and see the world with her mate, Charles, once he’d gotten control of his thirst. So long as I follow Luca’s rules, much like with Carlisle and Esme, I’m always welcome to spend a few weeks each year at their estate in Malta. I met then Princess Elizabeth there once. Great lady.” he told us as Kate and Rosalie returned and joined us in the family room.

“I thought you still hate the British?” Rosalie asked, and Garrett chuckled.

“Oh, I do. Don’t get me wrong, she is very British, but she’s not an entirely dismal person once you get to talking with her. Prince Phillip’s the same.” he explained.

“Good to know.” Jasper said, pressing play and resuming the movie before anyone else could interrupt again.

When the Denali Coven went home a few days later, Garrett asked to go with them. In the time they had spent in our house, Garrett had bonded with Elliot and found himself as Kate’s main interest. Tanya, though she had the final say, discussed the matter with her family before allowing him to join them on their return trip. They agreed to visit again within the upcoming year, and Eleazar had been especially excited to return once I told him what I had foreseen of Bella’s gift. Renata, Aro’s personal bodyguard that Garrett had mentioned in passing, was the last shield he had encountered due to the power’s rare occurrence. Some powers, he said, were commonplace amongst vampires to the point of going unnoticed. Others, like those in my family, were not.

“As impressive as I find all of your abilities, I fear that Aro would see the expansion of your family as a threat should he find out about what Alice and Bella are capable of, not to mention his want for Jasper and Edward that predates all of this.” he said as the cousins were piling into the rented minivan that they were driving to the airport to take one of the jets back to Anchorage.

“Unfortunately, he will discover their gifts in due time. Alice has already foreseen this, and we know what to expect.” Carlisle said, and Tanya looked at him in alarm.

“What’s going to happen?” she asked, and my father looked at my siblings and I for confirmation that it was alright with us to share our future with the cousins to which he got five positive responses prompting him to answer.

“Alice is a psychic, and Bella, Edward’s mate who will be joining the family in the coming months, is a shield. Aro is going to find out, somehow, and he is going to do what he always does when he sees something that he wants. He’ll amass his forces, witnesses he’ll call them, and seek to destroy us for whatever slight against him he’s accused us of making. We will have witnesses of our own to defend ourselves, and he will be surprised at the abilities we all possess. In Alice’s vision, Kate was there and using her power to amplify Bella’s by electrifying her shield.” Carlisle said, still keeping some of our secrets to himself.

“To go up against the Volturi, to go up against Aro is seldom a victory, even a hard-fought one.” Carmen noted.

“We know, but what we’re fighting for, it’s more precious than anything else in the world.” Edward told her. “While I would never purposefully put my family at risk, I would also never let them come to harm either.”

“We have time, though.” Esme interjected. “At the very least, we have until after Alice, Bella, and Edward graduate before this can even be the slightest possibility.”

“How can you be sure?” Irina asked, her eyes flickering to me in an obvious manner before seeing the way my mother’s eyes narrowed. “How can you be sure that any of us can consider ourselves safe until then?”

“I take great pride in knowing my children, my sons especially, better than they know themselves half the time. Edward wouldn’t let himself change Bella or allow her to be changed until they were married, and the people of Forks won’t think of Edward as eighteen until two Junes from now.” she said coolly. “As for Jasper, he has full faith in Alice’s vision just like the rest of us, and her visions say that Bella will be turned first.”

“I can sense her power, so I am willing to trust Alice’s visions as well.” Eleazar said, and Irina went silent.

“This is definitely going to get interesting.” Garrett said as followed Kate and Elliot into the van, Irina following after him.

“If the nomads return and you find yourselves in need of help, feel free to call, Carlisle.” Tanya said before following her youngest sister.

Carmen and Eleazar said nothing more aloud, but Edward seemed to get a message that no one else could hear before the two Spanish vampires got into the front seat of the van and disappeared down our driveway. Only when the engine could no longer be heard by vampire ears did he tell us what the two had thought. The Denalis would remain our allies in a stand against Aro, but Irina may end up sidelined if her paranoia didn’t cease.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, sweets. I couldn't resist the chance to bring Garrett into the story, and I hope everyone enjoyed his appearance in this chapter. The next chapter will be the entrance of Isabella Marie Swan to the population of Forks. Until next time!


	8. Discover Something New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Whenever, wherever/We're meant to be together/I'll be there and you'll be near/And that's the deal my dear/Thereover, hereunder/You'll never have to wonder/We can always play by ear/But that's the deal my dear..."  
> -"Whenever, Wherever," Shakira

Begrudgingly, both Rosalie and I retired our cars to the garage for the better part of the last month-and-a-half of the semester. With the snow falling as frequently as it was, taking Emmett’s Jeep everyday proved to be the better option for the five of us. Edward grumbled about having to sit in the back with Jasper and me, but even I knew that he meant none of the insults he aimed at both our brother and the snow. Honestly, he probably could’ve driven his Volvo, but it made little sense for us to take multiple cars to school in the first place. He and Rosalie had both gotten upset when I’d said this to them, and Jasper settled it by saying that we could go to school every morning in groups of two once Bella had moved to town.

With every passing day, I thought of Bella more. I knew my new sister’s arrival was getting closer, and this both excited and unnerved me. Bella’s arrival would also signal the beginning of the end to the effects of the memory spell Gwen had put on the nomadic coven. They would remember their mission, potentially, no later than the summer and would definitely resume it depending upon whatever deal they’d struck with Maria to find me. I knew that, whenever they had the time and mostly on sunny days that kept them from school, Jasper was training the rest of the family to fight. Since it would’ve been noticeable if I’d gone to school when the others didn’t, I got to skip on sunny days and go into the woods to watch them practice.

Emmett was easily the strongest, but I’d never seen him win against Jasper despite the frequent fights they had seeing as how Emmett never lost without demanding a rematch. Emmett also had the most energy out of everyone fighting, and I felt that it was owed both to his age and his personality. Until Bella would be turned, for I knew she would go before me, Emmett was still the youngest vampire in the family. Even with Rosalie only being a few months older, Emmett’s human life had left him with a much more carefree attitude and easygoing personality than the others. What he lacked in bitterness, resentment, regret, and sadness manifested itself as raw energy that he channeled into his strength. While this made him easily stronger than Jasper, it hindered his ability to make sudden, swift changes to his method of attack. Emmett ended up flat on his back with Jasper looking down at him and smirking every time. This was generally followed by Jasper helping Emmett to his feet and putting someone else into a sparring match.

Though she was the one to suggest training to begin with, Rosalie was the opposite of Emmett and was easily the weakest fighter. Now, that didn’t mean that she wasn’t deadly. My sister had made short work of Edward during one match after he began to underestimate her, and I had nearly fallen from the Jeep’s tailgate laughing at his expression. What Rosalie lacked in her physical strength, at least compared to the male members of the family, she more than made up for in her ability to move with the grace and fluidity of an international level gymnast. She was quicker and more nimble than everyone but Edward, and this led to her being hard to catch. However, the time it took for her to regain her bearings when she flipped out of her opponent’s way left her vulnerable to attacks. She and Emmett were the reasoning behind the first two of Jasper’s training mantras: Never go for the obvious kill, and never lose focus.

Edward, despite the one match against Rosalie and the one time he’d had to fight Esme, was just as good a fighter as Emmett and Jasper owing to both his speed and mind reading. If he was focused on his opponent, he knew their next move before they could act on it and was prepared to stop it. Jasper theorized that I’d be able to do something similar after the change, especially if my level of control over my visions continued to develop as nicely as it had been. The only reason his fight with Esme had gone worse for him than his fight with Rosalie had been because of his reluctance to strike her knowing her past. Jasper didn’t make them partner up again after that, but he did pair Edward with Carlisle more often than he did anyone else.

Carlisle turned out to be a fairly decent fighter. Though a pacifist by nature, he’d taken to training with gusto as it meant protecting his family. Given his reluctance to do harm, however, this made him the perfect opponent for Edward because his attacks typically occurred without much thought and were often times reactionary. More than once, however, he’d managed to put Edward to the ground because my dumbass brother had gotten cocky and changed focus before Jasper called the fight to an end. Thus, the third mantra came into being: Never turn your back on your enemy.

Esme, as a fighter, ranked somewhere between Edward and Carlisle based solely on her ferocity. The way she fought was aggressive, and watching her made it clear as to why Emmett thought that Maria was an idiot for trying to take now two of Esme’s children. My mother would have no problem taking care of herself in a fight, based on what I’d seen, and this was probably the biggest surprise out of any fight I witnessed the whole time they trained. Even with the three inches Rosalie had on her, Esme had put her to the ground with minimal effort when they fought. I mentioned to Jasper that we should be sure to invite the cousins down for training at some point to get a better mix of male and female opponents, and he said that one more pass at Edward by Tanya would likely result in Esme wanting to fight the strawberry blonde. I’d giggled, but I knew he was telling the truth.

“Garrett could probably start training them, with Eleazar’s help, and make sure that they’re up to par at the very least. I can send him a text in a bit.” Jasper told me one night as we got into bed the night before the new semester started.

“I really do hope that Irina can gain a better perspective on things before she makes Tanya do something drastic.” I responded, frowning as I thought of how distant she had been compared to the other cousins during their visit.

“We all do, Darlin’.” he said. “But only time will tell.”

He kissed me goodnight and wrapped an arm around me when I snuggled closer to him. I drifted off to sleep while he read _Cat on a Hot Tin Roof_ after having to listen to Emmett and I debate the question as to who really had control in the play’s central family, the men or the women. It was an ordinary night, and I felt content.

One the one-year anniversary of mine and Cynthia’s move to Forks, I went to Aunt Catherine’s with Jasper to see my human family. We’d been there for about half an hour when there was a knock at the door and my aunt disappeared to answer it. When she returned, Charlie was with her.

“I don’t mean to interrupt anything, but I saw Alice’s car in the driveway and wanted to ask a favor of you and Lauren.” he said, and I felt that I knew what he meant.

“Oh, sure, Charlie.” I replied. “What’s going on?”

“Is something wrong?” my cousin added.

“No, everything’s great, actually.” Charlie said. “It’s about Bella, my daughter. She’s moving up here in about a week to stay for a while; her mom got remarried, and they’re moving to Florida for Phil’s work, but Bella doesn’t want to go with them and intrude on newlywed bliss. I was wondering if you girls might be able to help me figure out what teenage girls like and maybe try to be her friend when she gets here? I just don’t want her feeling like coming here was a mistake.”

“I’ll see about rekindling our old friendship when I see her, Charlie, but Jessica’s got me signed up for Sweethearts and prom planning committees, so I’m busy all the time right now.” Lauren said, and Charlie nodded.

“I can ask Rosalie, but I’m sure she and I can help.” I offered, and Charlie smiled.

“Thank you, Alice, because I really don’t know what I’m doing.” he said with a chuckle. “After Bella called and asked if it was okay for her to live with me, I realized that I don’t even know how a teenage girl’s bedroom is supposed to look.”

“When it comes to shopping and design, the Cullen women have a certain proclivity for it.” Jasper teased, and I laughed lightly. “I’m sure Rose and our mother would love to help.”

Jasper had been right, and the three of us descended upon Charlie’s house that weekend with paint, bedding, furniture, and a few special things that we knew Bella would like. The old green paint on the walls received a fresh coat in the same shade, and matching oak furniture replaced the dated pieces Charlie had in the room previously. The bedding set we’d picked out was purple with a floral pattern, something I had seen that Bella would like. When deciding where the desk needed to go, I stopped Esme from putting it beneath the window.

“As funny as I would find it, if his habits with his human are anything like his older brother’s, we don’t need Edward faceplanting on Bella’s floor after tripping over her computer.” I pointed out, making my sister and mother laugh at the mental image of our brother sprawled out face down on the floor like a cartoon character.

“The saddest part of that statement is that Edward _would_ trip and faceplant even with the enhanced reflexes.” Esme noted as the desk was pushed against the wall opposite the bed by Rosalie.

“It’s Edward, Mom.” Rosalie said. “He fell down the stairs last week trying to dodge a throw pillow Emmett launched at him for making some dumbass comment about Spock.”

“Kate thought the video was hilarious.” I added, glad my gift had allowed me to foresee what my brothers were about to do and ensure that I got it on camera.

“Your father wasn’t too happy about the stairs getting crushed, but he did get a laugh out of the reason behind it. I’m just glad he didn’t break something valuable this time.” Esme said, and the three of us laughed together as we put the finishing touches on Bella’s room.

Sunday afternoon, Charlie drove up to Port Angeles to pick up Bella from the airport. Excited for our sister to finally be home, as far as we were concerned, Rosalie and I were volunteered by our mother to deliver a broccoli, chicken, cheese, and rice casserole she’d prepared to the Swan house once we knew they were home. Charlie had been surprised when we’d arrived, but he understood why once we told him what Esme had told us.

“Mom didn’t want you worrying about dinner on Bella’s first night here.” I said, smiling as to put him at ease, a trick I had learned from years of society parties with my great-grandmother back in Mississippi.

“Hey, Dad, who’s he- Oh, hello.” came a familiar female voice, and I turned to see Bella walking into the kitchen.

“It’s so great to finally meet you, Bella.” I said as I crossed the room and hugged her, not unlike the way Esme had been with me when we first met. “I’m Alice Cullen.”

“Hi, Alice.” Bella said nervously. “It’s great to meet you, too?”

“Excuse my sister. She can be a little excitable sometimes.” Rosalie said with a soft smile. “Rosalie Hale.”

“You’re sisters?” Bella asked, and we nodded just as Charlie’s phone rang.

“That’s probably Billy again, and they can talk for hours.” I said as the three of us were left alone in the kitchen, and Bella laughed as well.

“That’s true.” she replied. “We can talk upstairs?”

“That sounds great.” I told her, and the three of us went up to her room where she immediately turned to Rosalie with concern on her face.

“You’re a vampire, but your eyes are the wrong color.” she said, and we both laughed.

“Actually, this is what color vampire eyes turn when the vampire feeds solely off of animal blood.” Rosalie explained, and Bella blinked in surprise.

“Animal blood?” she asked.

“Our dad doesn’t like hurting humans, so he tried starving himself when he was first changed and ended up killing a herd of deer on impulse one day when the thirst got too bad. We’re one of two covens who feed exclusively off animals instead of people.” Rosalie told her, and I nodded.

“I’ll be the second or third known vampire to choose this lifestyle from the start once I’ve been changed.” I said, and Bella turned to me in surprise.

“I’m officially lost.” my new sister said.

“Gwen said you would be, and I foresaw this anyway.” I told her. “Rosalie is just as much my sister as she is my sister-in-law since I was adopted by Carlisle and Esme Cullen.”

“You foresaw this?” Bella asked, and I nodded.

“I knew you’d move here a year ago when I moved here. I’ve had several visions of how your first day of school could go, but after the first time it changed, once Rosalie stopped hating my very existence, it’s been because of my brother’s indecision.” I said. “I know all of this because I’m a natural psychic, and my visions are based on people’s intentions for the future or their previous actions for the past. Those visions are mostly reserved for things I need to know about someone or thing, so they don’t happen often.”

“You’re the one Gwen calls ‘sugar,’ aren’t you?” Bella asked, grinning. “I’ve been curious as to why I’d never met you before with as much as she talks about you, but now I see why. You’ve been here for the last year!”

“That’d be me.” I answered, all three of us moving to sit on the bed.

“How does a human live in a house full of vampires?” Bella asked, and I grinned over at my older sister who rolled her eyes.

“Very carefully when you take into account for the fact that three of those vampires are also pretty much eternal teenage boys who live to egg one another on and get into fights all the freaking time.” Rosalie lamented, and I laughed.

“I have two brothers, one of them being Rose’s husband, Emmett, and the other being Edward, the lone single member of our family who isn’t even technically single. The third teenage boy would be Jasper, and he’s my mate.” I explained. “They love each other, but boys will be boys and get into wrestling matches over who caught the biggest animal during their hunt or which of them has a better favorite song. Life is never dull.”

“How is Edward single but not single?” Bella asked, and Rosalie snorted.

“He knows who his mate is, but he hasn’t met her face-to-face yet.” she said to our new sister, and Bella tilted her head confusion. “He’s been waiting for her to move to town for about a year.”

“Think Mom’s still got him tied down, or would he have broken free by now?” I asked, wondering about my brother aloud.

“He broke through the metal cables an hour ago. Jasper’s babysitting him at this point.” Rosalie countered. “He’s probably keeping him very calm and near docile.”

“Okay, I’m interested. Can you tell me more about your family?” Bella asked us, and we nodded happily before launching into the abridged version of the Cullen Family History saga.

By the time Rosalie and I left Charlie’s house, Billy and Jacob Black had shown up with what Charlie informed all of us would be Bella’s new old truck. She was apparently the clumsiest person on the planet, something even Gwen had said about her, and would need something as sturdy at the old 1950s Ford to drive herself around in whenever Edward wasn’t available. Billy was pleasant with me, asking how Aunt Catherine was even though I knew they had seen one another not that long ago, and I smiled as I remembered the vision she’d had the previous year of the wolf protecting her from the attacking mountain lions in conjunction with the vision I’d had of my family and our friends confronting the Volturi after my change. There had been no blue-roan wolf in my vision, and I was starting to think it was because he’d never had the opportunity to phase. I mentioned this to Jasper later that night, and he agreed that a relationship between my aunt and Billy Black could very well happen given the bond the two shared over losing their spouses and becoming single parents in an instant of pain and tragedy. The fact that Charlie only really had eyes for Sue Clearwater helped to rule out a relationship between him and Aunt Catherine, as well.

The next morning, Edward said he was taking the Volvo to school whether or not we rode with him. Though it was pouring rain, there was no expectation of snow that day. So, Rosalie and I waived him on before she got in the Jeep with Emmett and I tossed my keys to Jasper. We understood that our brother was nervous to finally meet Bella, and we all agreed that it was alright to give him whatever space he needed.

I didn’t see Bella for most of the school day, but I wasn’t surprised to find her at Lauren’s table during lunch. My cousin had made Charlie a promise after all, and Lauren was generally good about following through on her promises to people she actually knew would report back to Aunt Catherine if she didn’t. The others at the table, aside from Angela and Ben, were smothering Bella with questions and poor attempts at flirtation, so Rosalie and I decided to step in to save our sister. Getting up with mildly dramatic sighs, we walked over to Lauren’s table.

“I was beginning to think you’d decided to be homeschooled or something!” I told her. “I haven’t seen you all day!”

“Like I said before, Bella, she’s excitable.” Rosalie added. “We’ve got an open chair if you wanna come sit with us and talk for a bit.”

Bella bid my cousin and her friends goodbye before following Rosalie and me back to where the boys were sitting. Bella’s chair was between me and Edward, and my brother sent me a vision within seconds of her sitting down that had me groaning internally. She was his singer.

“ _You’re supposed to fuck then kill her via a baby, not fucking kill her, dumbass!_ ” I thought back at him, and he snorted.

“We should probably warn you that between his mind reading and her psychic visions, these two can have entire conversations without ever actually saying a word.” Emmett said as he introduced himself to our new sister. “I’m Emmett Cullen.”

“Bella Swan.” she replied, looking between Edward and me. “Is there a point where they tell us what’s going on, or do we just guess?”

“If we’re lucky, they’ll tell us once they stop fighting.” I heard Jasper say as Edward sent another vision. “Jasper Hale.”

“Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, you obviously do have that much self-control, and going to the cousins isn’t going to help you because Tanya’s just going to annoy you into coming home as it is because she’s pissed off that she can’t have you!” I hissed at my brother, and he scrunched his nose at me saying his full name.

“Shit.” Emmett breathed out, catching on to what Edward and I were discussing after having dealt with it twice himself. “Can’t you just read a Victorian novel for this kind of drama?”

“Well, that explains the rise in thirst I just felt.” Jasper added with a roll of his eyes. “This could only happen to you, little brother.”

“You hurt her, I hurt you.” Rosalie said simply, and Bella looked confused for exactly five seconds before sighing and running a hand over her face before turning towards Edward.

“I’m your mate, but I’m also your singer.” she said matter-of-factly. “You realized this, and your gut reaction was to run away.”

“No, at least not forever. I was just worried for a second that I’d slip up and change the future again. Alice doesn’t like it when I do that, and I have to live with her. She’s a nightmare when she wants to be, and I shouldn’t have to be emotionally scarred for life by my sister’s thoughts so frequently.” Edward said in his own defense. “It is nice to finally meet you, Isabella Swan, after how much said sister has spoken of you since she first foresaw your arrival here.”

“You’re the first person today who’s called me by my full first name and hasn’t made me want to punch them at the same time. This could work out well for us.” Bella told him, smiling, and watching the two of them get to know one another was amazing.

“I don’t think we ever had a stage like that.” I told Jasper as we walked to the French class that we now shared this year after lunch had ended.

“Darlin’, you knew everything about me before we met. I’ve always been able to read you like an open book. We had one game of Twenty Questions that was more for my benefit than for yours, and that was the extent of our ‘Getting to Know You’ stage.” he replied.

“Do you regret us not having that stage?” I asked as we took our seats, him stopping to pull mine out for me first.

“Honestly, no. You’re my frightening little monster, and I’d never change a thing about our relationship or how we got from the airport in New Orleans to this classroom right now.” he said, the nickname a teasing reminder to that first night I’d been in Forks and had been worried about how others would respond to my gift.

A few days after Bella’s first day of school, I was in my studio with my music turned up as loud as I could stand it. All conversation at school had been limited to the topics of either Bella or the Sweethearts Ball happening in three weeks, and hearing the same two things on repeat was beginning to grate on my nerves. My family had gone hunting, so I was alone in the house and began swaying to the gentle sounds of the music flowing from the iPod dock stereo beside my easel. A soft, Broadway piano ballad was playing, something I rarely listened to when Edward or Rosalie were home as they always insisted on giving input on such songs, and I became so wrapped up in the melody that I didn’t hear someone walking up behind me. It wasn’t until a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around my midsection that I realized that I wasn’t alone any longer.

The person attached to the arms swayed with me, pressed a kiss to my neck, and spun me around once I’d set my paintbrush down on the easel tray. My left hand fell into Jasper’s right as he spun me, and my right hand landed softly on his left shoulder. We danced a slow waltz, the one dance I had actually known the basic steps to before Rosalie had demanded I learn to dance over the past summer to prepare me for prom, and Jasper twirled me in circles a few times as the song ended. I giggled as he pecked me on the lips, happy that he was home.

“I thought you guys weren’t getting back until later tonight if not in the morning?” I asked, and he smiled a soft, loving smile.

“The others will be back later, but I didn’t want to stay there when I knew you were here.” he answered, his emotions flowing through to me as he spoke.

“Someone is feeling very affectionate this evening.” I said, and he chuckled.

“Between the dance, Edward and Bella, and my own feelings, coming home to hold you while you sleep was definitely more appealing than getting into another wrestling match with my brothers, Darlin’.” Jasper admitted, and I was content with letting him do just that.

Monday morning, I woke to a scene of wintry weather that I’d had hoped would’ve been gone by this time of year. Fortunately, even though Forks was covered in a late-season snowfall, Rosalie and I had thought ahead and made sure that our cars were prepped for such weather and decided to go to school that morning in our cars while Edward insisted on taking his Volvo alone. We met up with Bella in the parking lot that morning before the first bell rang, and it was obvious to any passerby that Bella was one of us. Though it was still early on in their relationship, I noticed the way she drifted closer and closer to Edward the longer the six of us stood together. It was sweet, especially when the two of them would get these adorable little smiles on their faces, but every time I thought about how adorable I found them, my brother would level his best glare at me. I shrugged it off each time, but that didn’t stop him from trying his best to intimidate me.

When the bell rang, we went our separate ways for class. The day moved slowly at first, nothing but the same two topics being discussed at every opportunity with the new addition of Bella’s relationship with Edward and if they were really a couple. During lunch, I felt the pull of a vision and grabbed ahold of Jasper’s bicep.

**Three figures were standing in a dark wooded area outside of what looked to be some sort of industrial plant. One was clearly female, and the other two were male. The female had flaming red hair and pale skin, the first man had blond hair and was as pale as the woman but otherwise overwhelmingly average, and the third mad was one who I had seen a year earlier sinking his fangs into my uncle’s neck.**

**“ _Laurent, are you sure that there’s not a coven with permanent territory nearby? We can’t risk hunting in claimed land, and you know that._ ” the woman hissed quietly.**

**“ _Victoria, we’ve been over this. Even if there was a coven nearby, they must be at least two-hundred miles away and won’t be of issue for us tonight. I say we hunt here for now and then continue our search tomorrow._ ” Laurent told her.**

**“ _He’s right, Tor, we need to be at our strongest if we’re going up against a larger coven. Don’t you remember what that Italian coven did to you and your sisters?_ ” the average one asked.**

**“ _James, I will never forget what they did. Don’t ever ask me that again._ ” Victoria said, and then the three hurried off towards the industrial complex.**

“I don’t even know if that was anywhere near here, so I can’t tell you where they are outside of that.” I said as I returned to the present to find Edward staring across the table at me.

“There’s only one way to find out, unfortunately.” Edward replied, shooting a look at Jasper and our siblings, each of whom nodded.

“What’s going on, guys?” Bella asked, confused.

“A year ago, Alice’s, for lack of a better term, stepmother hired a coven of three nomadic vampires to hunt her down and bring her back to Mississippi so that she could be turned and join Maria’s army. One of the three was sent to scout the area and determine if any other covens had already claimed the area so that they knew if they’d have to ask permission to hunt here and to take Alice like they were hired to do. He killed Alice’s uncle, Lauren’s father, but got chased out of town by the Pack before he could get any closer.” Emmett explained, his voice just loud enough for Bella and me to hear him.

“Gwen called me to say that she’d cast a memory spell on the coven after she’d overheard them talking about what they’d been hired to do while they were regrouping in New Orleans. The spell had a seven-month maximum lifespan, so they’re at the point of being able to remember if they get to close.” I added. “My vision was of the three of them, but I have no idea where they are or how close to us that they might be.”

“The only way for us to know for sure without getting into a confrontation is to see if anyone turns up dead within a two-hundred-mile radius of here in the next few days under suspicious circumstances.” Edward told her, and Bella frowned.

“What’s the issue with confronting them before they kill anyone?” she asked.

“There’s a few reasons why we can’t do that.” Jasper answered. “First, they’re stronger than we are just by virtue of their diet versus ours. Second, despite what we know of them, we don’t know which one is the leader. Third, on the off chance that they pick up Alice’s scent or anything that draws them further this direction, we’d lose the element of surprise.”

“Once they know about us, it becomes harder to make them underestimate our abilities. We need for them to not know about our existence for as long as possible because, if she’s warned them about any potentially claimed territory by any coven in this area, Maria knows we tend to stick to this general area with a few jaunts East every other decade.” Rosalie added, and Bella sighed.

“If we have to let it happen, then I guess I can see if Charlie finds out about any strange deaths over the next few days.” she said. “I’m not sure how much help that’ll be, but it’s something.”

When Bella arrived at school the next morning, her expression was grim. When none of us said anything, she asked if Edward had heard her thoughts. My brother told her that he had always been unable to read her mind, likely owing to her shield. Bella had been reasonably confused, so the six of us crammed inside Emmett’s Jeep to discuss both Bella’s powers and whatever was troubling her in reasonable privacy.

“You’ve done enough research into vampires to know that sometimes vampires develop additional gifts after the change, right?” I said to her, getting a nod in response. “Well, some of them have access to their gift before they’re changed. While some vampires, like Edward and Jasper, only become aware of their gifts after they’ve been turned, others, like me and you, have access to or are aware of our gifts well beforehand. Where I have my visions, you have a shield.”

“A shield?” Bella asked, still confused, so I turned to Edward.

“You understand Eleazar and his gift more than the rest of us because you two have deep, intellectual discussions about powers, so can you explain?” I asked, and he nodded.

“Yeah, I can explain.” Edward said, turning from me to Bella. “Eleazar is one of our cousins from Denali, and his gift is being able to sense others’ gifts. What you can do, what your power is called is a shield because you possess both a mental shield that protects you from mental powers like mine and a physical shield, which you might not be able to use just yet, that protects you from any physical attacks. Alice foresaw it in a vision a year ago, and I saw her vision as she had it.”

“From what these two described, the physical shield will be strong enough to keep out the Volturi’s strongest guard, and his strength exceeds Emmett’s, if only by a small margin.” Rosalie added, Emmett nodding beside her.

“Felix is damn near impossible to stop unless you have some sort of long-distance offensive talent that he can’t prepare for, like your shield. Then again, Jasper could probably take him if your shield was protecting us from Felix.” Emmett said, smirking over at Jasper, and my mate smirked back at him.

“Felix’s weak spot is his emotions. I’d have him beat before he knew what was goin’ on if Bella had her shield between us.” Jasper stated. “He’s a major flirt, and if I hadn’t been screwin’ with his emotions when he accompanied Aro during his last visit to see Dad, he’d have ended up in a brawl with Emmett because he couldn’t quit flirtin’ with Rose.”

“Okay, so since the Felix/shield thing can be tabled for now, the nomads are definitely close.” Bella broke in, redirecting the conversation back to the original topic. “Charlie told me this morning not to wait on him for dinner because he’s driving down to Mason County to aid in their investigation after one of the Gresham Mill guards was found dead this morning. Mason County is saying it’s an animal attack, but Charlie says it’s too reminiscent of what happened to Alice’s uncle to be an animal.”

Our suspicions confirmed, we exited the Jeep just as the first bell rang. Jasper walked me to my art class despite the fact that his class was on the other side of campus and would require him running at vampire speed to get there on time, and my thoughts were too consumed by the nomadic coven’s impending approach to be angry at him for this. He pecked me on the cheek at my classroom’s door and hurried off once I walked into the room. I tried masking my worried as we began working on our current project, paintings on mythological creatures, but Angela noticed.

“Alice, is everything okay?” she asked, and I sighed.

“Can you keep a secret?” I asked in response, and she nodded, so I continued. “A guard was killed at the Gresham Mill in Mason County, and Chief Swan thinks it’s related to my uncle’s case. He doesn’t know for sure, so Lauren’s not supposed to know yet. He told Bella, and she told me.”

“As much as I’d hate for that to be true, at least whoever did it might finally be caught.” she said simply before tilting her head at my painting. “You picked vampires?”

I looked at my project, a painting based on what I’d seen of Aro in my vision of my family’s confrontation with the Volturi, and wondered how she’d known that my subject was vampires. I had only just started filling in the marble-white color of his skin at this point, far from finished, and his eyes were still a blank white. Once I’d colored them their proper blood red, it would be more obvious as to what my subject was, but how Angela knew I had no idea.

“Yeah, but how’d you know?” I asked, and she shrugged.

“He looks how I’d think a vampire would look.” she answered, and I looked over at her canvas to see a trio of mermaids floating in an open oceanscape; their hands were joined together as if they were in a circle, and their heads were aimed upward towards the surface.

“Nice mermaids.” I said, and Angela’s eyes went wide for a second before she smiled and thanked me, adding to my suspicions.

During lunch later that day, I continue thinking on the incident with Angela in art class. Edward nearly had a mini-stroke when he heard what I was thinking, and this caught the attention of the other four people at our table. As we filed our mates and siblings in, Bella slipped her cell phone from her pocket and fired off a text. She looked up after pocketing her phone, and her eyes met mine which I knew reflected a curious expression.

“Last summer, Maddie and I were tracking a pod of mermaids in the Gulf of Mexico after one too many boaters went missing. Some are vicious and bloodthirsty, and others are more timid and tend to shy away from humans at all cost. Knowing that I was moving in with Charlie after Renee and Phil moved, I shipped all of my notes to Maddie for safekeeping. I just asked her to email me what she can as soon as she can.” Bella told me, and I nodded.

“Could Ange be one?” I asked, and Bella peered over at Lauren’s table where Angela was sitting with Ben, steadily eating away at a rather delicious looking Asian citrus chicken salad.

“A lot of the elements in her salad are high in Vitamin D, which most mermaids need to consume to make up for the lack of sunlight on the ocean floor. She’s also got the right build, and between what you’ve said about her painting and the photos I saw from the Halloween party, she knows enough about them that she’s either one of them or knows someone who is.” she answered with a chuckle, and this earned her a raised eyebrow from our brother.

“What’s so funny, Bells?” Emmett asked, getting a smirk from our sister.

“Do you know what the mermaids I was tracking last summer did with the boaters who disappeared? They drained these men of their blood and fed the meat to the sharks. The lore is spotty in some areas, but mermaids are sort of like the aquatic cousins of Dhampir; so long as they remain dry, the look completely normal. They eat human food, have human biological needs, and age like the typical human. Once they’re in the water, though, they might as well be vampires with fish tails. They can survive off of blood, but some pods prefer living off of sea vegetation or living amongst humans instead because the alternative draws attention if the pod gets too big. In the event Angela is one of them, you can tell her everything.” Bella said, and the idea of having someone local outside of the family who knew the truth left each of the four vampires with us slightly unsettled until Bella continued on with one last mermaid factoid. “Mermaids also age at a quarter of the rate of humans once they reach maturity. Most pods who choose to live amongst humans only settle for as long as their young are growing up, and then the pod tends to leave once the last of their younglings hits maturity. Angela has two younger brothers, so she’ll be in the area for a while if we’re right. A mermaid never strays too far from her pod.”

All of us continued thinking about the possibilities of Angela being a mermaid and of her learning our family’s secret for the remainder of the day. When the last bell rang, we gathered around our cars on the far side of the parking lot to discuss dinner plans. Well, that’s what Bella and I were discussing, as I saw no reason for her to go home to an empty house until whenever Charlie might get home to eat by herself when I knew that Esme had no qualms about cooking for more than just me, even if I told her that I could cook my own food, as it was her need to mother her children. We were still debating the issue when a van, one I recognized at Tyler’s, came careening towards us across a patch of ice.

Jasper reacted first, pulling me around to the other side of the Jeep seconds before the crash. Emmett and Rosalie had done much of the same, but Edward and Bella had been further down by Bella’s truck and Edward’s Volvo, so they were the ones at risk of being crushed. Edward threw his hand up as the van neared them, his arm shielding Bella from the brunt of the vehicle’s impact, and the van swerved slightly as it initially struck my brother’s arm. A large dent was now in the bed of Bella’s truck, and an even larger dent was in the van as it swerved around my brother and sister to crash into my car. The crunching sound alone told me that it was totaled.

“Is everyone alright?” Emmett barked out after a moment. “Edward, Bella!”

“We’re fine, mostly. I think Bella might’ve sprained her wrist, so we should still probably take her to see Dad to get it set.” Edward called, and I knew that there was no “might’ve” when he spoke about Bella’s wrist considering the fact that he’d already been through med school twice. “Alice, Jasper?”

“We’re fine.” Jasper called back.

“My car is trashed, but we’re fine.” I added, mostly under my breath, but I knew that Bella was the only one of us to not hear it.

When we arrived at the hospital, all of us had to be checked to make sure that we hadn’t suffered any concussions. Luckily, the doctor in the ER when we got there was Carlisle, and he did the examinations on all six of us. Charlie and Aunt Catherine showed up just as Carlisle was finishing my exam, about to move on to Bella’s, and I sighed. Charlie started threatening to take Tyler’s license away, even though we all insisted that it wasn’t his fault, so Carlisle asked Mary, an older nurse who I’d met back when we’d done the abuse write-up so that my aunt could secure custody of me, to take Tyler to have some x-rays done on his potentially broken arm.

“Dad, what are you doing here?” Bella asked. “I thought you’d be in Mason County all day?”

“I came back as soon as Cathy called me.” Charlie said, and Carlisle began Bella’s exam.

“I’m fine, Dad, so you can go back to work if you want. I know how important this is for you.” she told him, and he shot a look at my aunt.

“Mason County? Charlie, what’s going on?” Aunt Catherine asked, and this time Charlie exchanged a glance with Carlisle before telling her.

“Cathy, we don’t know that it’s the same people, but a guard at the Gresham Mill was killed last night in a manner similar to what happened to Mike.” he said, and she tensed.

“The news said that it was an animal attack.” she said, her eyes flickering over to Carlisle.

“Reports of incidents like this, Catherine, are usually labeled as animal attacks until something more conclusive can be found to link cases together. It’s all more so a matter of time than it is facts.” Carlisle said, and my aunt looked over at me as he said the word time.

“I’m just glad that you’re all okay. I hate these late season snow days!” she said, and none of us disagreed.

“The worst to come of this is that Bella has a sprained wrist, the Crowleys will need a new van, and Alice will be picking out a new car in the near future.” Carlisle interjected, smiling over at me. “Don’t make the bank account take too much of a hit, Poppet.”

“Never!” I teased, smiling at my father before turning to face the chief as well. “Charlie, it’s okay if you need or want to go back to Mason County to help. Bella can even stay the night with us if that makes you feel better about it, right, Dad?”

“Alice is right, as is normal. Charlie, it would be of no imposition to Esme and me if Bella were to stay over tonight.” Carlisle agreed, and Charlie sighed.

“Honestly, that’s probably for the best. I’m not the best caregiver, so I don’t know how much help to Bella I’d be anyway, and we all know how important this case is for everyone.” he relented after a moment. “Call me before you go to sleep? If I don’t answer right away, leave me a message so I at least know you’re safe.”

“I will, Dad, I promise.” Bella told him, and I made sure to mask my triumphant smirk well as I realized that I had won as Bella would be coming over to our house for dinner anyway.

In order to burn off some of the adrenaline from the day’s events, Jasper and our siblings went hunting once Bella and I had started getting ready for bed. I couldn’t force myself to fall asleep without Jasper beside me, far too used to having him there and being able to smell his familiar honey and lavender scent, so I sat awake with my sketchbook until a timid knock sounded on the door just before midnight. Knowing that no one else in my family understood the concept of knocking, I chuckled softly to myself.

“I’m still awake. C’mon in, Bella.” I called, and my sister came into my room with her cellphone in her hands.

“Hey, Alice, can I use your computer? Maddie just emailed me my mermaid notes, and I thought that, since clearly neither of us can sleep, we might be able to go through some of them?” she asked, and I nodded.

“How’d you know I was awake?” I asked as I grabbed my laptop off the desk and motioned for her to join me on the bed.

“I didn’t until Esme told me.” she admitted. “I was telling her and Carlisle about our theory that Angela’s a mermaid, and she said that you were still up and sketching.”

“Why can’t you sleep?” I asked as I put in my password.

“Probably the same reason as you. He won’t admit it, but I know that Edward comes through my window when I’m asleep, especially since you guys have been waiting for these nomads to return, and I’m just sort of used to it now. It was strange the first couple of nights, but it’s nice knowing that I’m safe.” Bella said, shrugging.

“I told Mom he’d do that. She was going to put your desk under the window, but I told her that if Edward behaved even a little bit like Jasper, he’d try sneaking through your window and end up tripping over your computer. He looks like he’s graceful and everything, but my brother is a complete klutz when he’s not paying attention.” I said, and she snickered as I passed her my laptop.

“How long after the whole sneaking through the window thing started did Jasper realize that you knew?” she asked, and I snorted.

“He never made an effort to hide it from me if we’re being honest. My first night in Forks, he nearly scared me to death just by leaning against the window when I went to my room after checking in on my baby sister.” I told her, and she laughed as she opened her email and clicked on the newest one. “You have a lot of notes on mermaids.”

“My vampire research is four times this size, easy, and over ninety percent of this is just based on Gwen’s lore books. I couldn’t get too close to the pod in the Gulf when Maddie and I figured out where they were since they feed on humans. If I’d known about my shield then, however, maybe I’d have gotten closer since they wouldn’t have been able to compel me.” Bella said as she angled my laptop to where we could both see the screen.

“Compel you?” I asked, and she scrolled through her notes until she reached the section on mermadic powers and abilities.

“Like vampires, or at least the sire, all mermaids are capable of compelling their victims and lower ranking members of the pod to do as their told.” she said, pausing for a moment before asking me a question. “Isn’t your psychotic stepmother Jasper’s sire?”

“Originally, yes, but that was remedied last year.” I explained. “I had a vision of Maria compelling him to go back to her, and forcing him to bring the twins along with him, and it left us both terrified. He spoke to Dad as soon as he got home, and Mom and I stayed inside the house while they went into the forest to do the Claiming ritual.”

“So, Carlisle’s his sire now?” Bella asked, and I chuckled.

“I thought your vampire research was even more extensive than your mermaid research?” I teased, continuing after she shoved me lightly with her good arm. “If a vampire with older, more potent venom injects their venom into the sire’s mark of another, younger vampire then they become the dominant sire. We know this worked when Dad and Jasper went through the process because my visions changed after it was done.”

“So, in the grand scheme of things, it’s like vampire adoption?” she asked, and I nodded.

“More or less, yeah.” I said, a piece of her mermaid research catching my eye. “You said that mermaids never venture far from their pods, right?”

“Yeah, that’s generally right. There’s a few instances of mermaids leaving their pods, but they’re not naturally solitary creatures. Without a pod, they tend to become withdrawn, lonely, and depressed. I’ve even read a few cases where a mermaid got separated from her pod and ended up suffering to the point of being near-death when she was finally found and taken home by her podmates.” Bella said, and I pursed my lips.

“If we’re right, then Angela can’t be the only one in the area.” I said, and she nodded.

“This is why we need some sort of supernatural Yellow Pages so we can tell where others have permanent territories.” Bella said, and I couldn’t help but agree with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, is Angela a mermaid and, if she is, who else could be in her pod? Let me know if you like the mermaid idea in the comments! Hope you all enjoy, sweets!


	9. The Beach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose/You can plant any one of those/Keep planting to find out which one grows/It's a secret no one knows/It's a secret no one knows/Oh, no one knows..."  
>  -"MMMBop," Hanson

Bella and I both were working off of less than four hours of sleep when we got to school the following morning. I was barely alert enough to understand what Angela was asking me when I heard her mention First Beach in La Push, making me zone in on the conversation at once. As she and Lauren were the only two I had any sort of regular contact with, they had been tasked with inviting Bella and me to join them and the rest of the group when they went to the beach on Saturday; my family couldn’t go, but Bella and I were more than willing to go if it meant either potentially finding out if we were right about Angela or seeing our friends on the rez. I told Angela that I’d ask the others, already knowing what their answers would be, and let either her or Lauren know something when I had responses. During lunch, we came up with excuses for why Rosalie and the boys wouldn’t be able to make it.

“You can always say that the three of us are going camping this weekend. Everyone tends to buy that excuse.” Emmett said, indicating himself, Edward, and Jasper.

“Okay, but what about Rose?” I replied.

“I’ve got a simple enough lie for that, too. I won’t actually be in town until late Saturday because Mom and I are leaving Friday night to pick up our dresses for Sweethearts, and you didn’t want to go with us because the nomads, so all you have to say is that I’m going with Mom to pick up the dresses.” Rosalie said, and Bella groaned.

“First, why do we have a school dance a month before prom even happens? Second, how did I let you two talk me into going in the first place?” she asked me and our sister, and we both smirked at her before answering as one.

“Big Sister knows best.” we said, and Bella mock-glared at us.

“How is Alice my big sister when I’m six months older than her?” she asked, and Jasper snorted as Edward looked at the table nervously. “What’s with them?”

“Alice’s visions tell us that you get turned first, Bells, and she’s going to have a human nineteenth birthday while you won’t. Therefore, technically, once all is said and done, Alice will be physically older than you.” Emmett said, shaking his head at his brothers.

“Alice, what is it about your visions that you’re not telling me about that would have Edward perpetually blushing if he could?” Bella asked, and I shook my head.

“I can’t tell you in here. You’d freak out and cause a scene, and then we’d have to explain it away somehow, which I don’t think we could honestly do.” I told her, and she gave a reluctant nod.

“Fair enough, but I expect to know something soon.” she told me, and I agreed to her terms.

Edward brought Bella to our house later that night once Charlie had gone to sleep. We all sat down in the formal living room, and I opened my sketchbook to a drawing I’d done of Edward and Bella’s daughter so that Esme could see how all four of her grandchildren would look. Her copper curls almost melded into the russet fur of the wolf behind her, the one I was sure was Jacob Black, and her deep chocolate eyes sparkled with the same mirth as her smiling cupid’s bow lips. Her warm, rosy cheeks gave life to what would have otherwise been a rather pale face, part of which was pressed against the wolf’s snout.

“Okay, so what I didn’t want to tell you about in the cafeteria is that I’ve seen you after your change and know exactly what will cause you to have to be changed outside of just you being with Edward for eternity.” I began, looking up at Bella from the pencil portrait of her daughter. “By all estimation, you will come home from your honeymoon pregnant with a baby Dhampir girl.”

“Isn’t that super dangerous?” Bella asked, and I nodded.

“Oh, it is, but we know how to handle the situation because I’ve foreseen Dhampir births before and researched them at Gwen’s before ever moving here.” I said, still unsure if I was willing to share all that I knew with anyone other than Jasper.

“Alice has done a portrait of our daughter, based on her visions, if you’d like to see it. She’s beautiful.” Edward told her softly, and Bella took a moment before nodding, taking the sketchbook as I offered it to her.

“She’s perfect.” Bella said, smiling down at the drawing I’d done. “I don’t understand the wolf, though.”

“You remember the legends of the Quileute tribe, don’t you, Bella?” I asked, and she nodded. “Well, based on what I’ve seen, that wolf if actually Jacob Black.”

“Jacob? My childhood best friend Jacob?” she asked, surprised, and we all nodded.

“The first day Alice came to this house, she had a vision of all of us during Christmas after you’ve both gone through the change. While you and Emmett were threatening to smear one another with icing from the Christmas cookies that Mom was baking, I was at the piano with our daughter when she jumped up and announced that _her_ Jacob was here. You had me follow her down to the garage where we evidently met with Jacob and the three of us returned upstairs where you gave him a snowman cookie that he split with our daughter while the two of you discussed the fact that she is capable of sensing his approach a full five minutes before even full-fledged vampires can, and he claims that her vampire genetics cause that.” Edward said, smiling as he said this in contrast to his initial reaction to Jacob’s place in my youngest niece’s life when I’d originally had the vision.

“We, all of us after some discussion, believe that this means that Jacob will imprint on your daughter just as she will likely see him as her mate once she is old enough to understand her feelings.” Carlisle added, and Bella’s eyes went wide.

“Hold up, imprinting? I haven’t even conceived her, and she already has a soulmate?” she asked, and I knew by the focus that came over him that Jasper was curbing her anger.

“Bella, it isn’t like that at all.” Rosalie, surprisingly, spoke up first. “The wolf has zero control over who they imprint on, and their relationship with the imprintee is entirely based on what the imprintee wants or needs. If your daughter needs a best friend, that’s what Jacob will be for her; however, given that half of her genetic makeup is vampire, her need to exert her own claim over Jacob will almost definitely ensure that she seeks him out as her mate once she reaches maturity, once she’s sure of what she wants.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my sister?” I asked, eyebrows raised in astonishment.

“After what you saw in your vision of us going against the Volturi alongside the wolves, I couldn’t stop wondering about the other wolf you saw, the one with Bree and us. I called Gwen the last time the guys went hunting, and I asked her what all information she had on the Quileute shapeshifters. I printed out everything she had her grandson, Caleb, email me, and it’s all in a binder in mine and Emmett’s room. I needed to know if I was seeing the correct signs, and I’m sure now that I was. This other wolf is going to imprint on my daughter, and I have to learn to be okay with it.” Rosalie said, and Emmett pressed a kiss to her hair.

“You are going to be an amazing mom, angel.” Emmett told her, and Rosalie smiled before looking over at Esme.

“I had a pretty amazing example to work from, baby.” she said, and Esme smiled back at her before her eyes drifted over to Bella and finally to me.

“I have full faith that all three of my girls will be excellent mothers.” she told us, her smile warm and full of love.

Bella rode home with us Friday afternoon, Charlie under the impression that she was sleeping over for my birthday and that we’d drive to La Push together the next day on my actual birthday. As my mother and sister had left on an overnight trip to pick up our dresses for Sweethearts, my family had no such plans of doing anything special for my seventeenth birthday that night. In fact, as it neared eleven, Carlisle was at the hospital on an overnight shift, and Emmett was playing chess with Bella while Edward refereed in between playing _Star Wars: Battlefront II_ in the family room. Jasper and I had been going over Bella’s notes on mermaids in our room when we heard the front door open and close, and a knock sounded on our door a few seconds later.

“Yes, Bella?” I asked, curious, and she smiled mischievously.

“I conveniently forgot something I needed back at my house, and Edward’s just left to go get it for me. Now’s your only shot, Jazz.” she said, and I looked over at my boyfriend to see him grinning in an equally impish manner to Bella.

“Thank you, little sister.” Jasper told her, and she gave a short nod before turning and making her way back to hers and Edward’s room just as a vision overtook me.

**Jasper was leading me through a darkened forest, and I recognized the path he was taking as the one to the clearing we’d spent so much of our time in before I moved into the house. Our clearing wasn’t empty when we got there, however, as a tent had been placed there on a wooden slab with enough room for the tent to have a deck with a table and chairs. Fairy lights crisscrossed over the deck area, and a light emanated from within the tent. Looking inside, I could see a bedroom setup and a record player.**

**“ _What’s all this?_ ” I asked, looking around in astonishment.**

**“ _You’ll have plenty more birthday presents later today, but I thought that you might enjoy us havin’ some alone time as well. Happy birthday, Darlin’._ ” he said, kissing me on the cheek before letting go of my hand and stepping inside the tent.**

**Jasper walked over to the record played and turned it on, the sounds of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons filling the air as he turned back to face me. He held out his hand and asked me to dance. I giggled, nodded, and slipped my hand into his. As he spun me around, I felt nothing but pure love and joy. He was smiling, looking the happiest I’d seen him since we’d determined that the nomads were back in the area, and he was singing aloud to me.**

**“ _You're just too good to be true/Can't take my eyes off of you/You'd be like Heaven to touch/I wanna hold you so much/At long last, love has arrived/And I thank God I'm alive/You're just too good to be true/Can't take my eyes off you…_ ” he sang, and I giggled as he begun spinning me faster as the beat picked up again.**

**When the song ended, Jasper kissed me. I kissed him back, and he deepened the kiss almost instantly. The emotions I felt were becoming more intense as the kiss continued, but there was a sudden drop off in them when Jasper pulled away and actively began trying to dial our emotions down himself. I placed a hand on his cheek and shook my head.**

**“ _Don’t do that._ ” I told him. “ _I’m ready._ ”**

**“ _Are you sure?_ ” he asked, and I nodded.**

**“ _I trust you._ ” I said, and then he unzipped my dress.**

Blinking rapidly, I turned towards Jasper in the present and pulled him down for a soft, short kiss. When we broke apart, I told him to give me time to get changed out of my pajamas. We were out of the house before Edward ever got back from Charlie’s.

I woke just before sunrise the next morning with a smile on my face. Some people might worry about the dangers of human/vampire sex, like Edward; but I wasn’t afraid. Maybe it was how much I trusted Jasper, or maybe it was his empathic gifts, but everything had been perfect.

“Good morning, Darlin’.” Jasper’s voice reached my ears, and I smiled wider.

“It’s a very good morning, honey. I suppose we’ll have to leave soon. I need to get home so I can shower and get changed for mine and Bella’s trip to the beach.” I said, and he appeared beside me, fully dressed.

“Since there’s no way I won’t be thinkin’ about last night all day long, should I record Edward’s expressions for you while you’re gone?” he asked as he sat down beside me on the bed.

“Oh, please do. The comedy factor would be appreciated.” I said, giggling as we kissed.

“What’s so funny, Darlin’?” he asked, and my hands began toying with the sweater he was wearing.

“Clearly, one of us is at a disadvantage. Either you’re overdressed, or I’m underdressed. Whatever will we do?” I asked, and he smiled down at me, taking in that all that separated us was the mass of warm blankets on the bed.

“If you don’t get dressed now, we’ll never make it back home in time. I don’t need your gift to know that.” he teased, and I smiled back at him.

“In that case, help me find my clothes. I know you didn’t tear them, or else I will be forced to have Rosalie slap you.” I said, and he ran at vampire-super-speed around the tent once in a matter of seconds, returning with all my clothes in his arms.

“Not a single torn thread, I promise.” he assured me, and I dressed quickly, though I caught Jasper staring at me in the mirror more than once as I did so.

The second surprise of my birthday happened when I stepped out of my bathroom to find Rosalie and Bella standing in front of the door with eager expressions on their faces. I couldn’t hide my own smile as I motioned for the two of them to follow me into my closet while I dried my hair. I knew that the boys had left before I’d even gone upstairs, Jasper having kissed me goodbye at the bottom of the staircase, and Rosalie said that Esme had gone on her quarterly trip to see Carlisle at work just to remind the nurses that he was very much so taken, so it was just my sisters and me in the house. Bella had clearly told her about Jasper’s surprise.

“So, Eddie and Bells are the lone holdouts in the coven now?” Rosalie teased, and I giggled in response.

“In Edward’s defense, he’s a virgin himself and doesn’t know what he’s missing. That ship sailed for Jasper before he ever joined this family.” I joked before the three of us sobered up enough to talk without giggling. “In all seriousness, last night was perfect. Thank you, Bella, for the small role you played.”

“What did you do, exactly?” Rosalie asked, both of us looking to our sister.

“After the whole thing about me and Edward having a kid, Jake imprinting on said kid, and Rose learning to not hate the wolves came out the other day, Jasper sent me an email so we could talk without being overheard. He wanted to know, from a human’s perspective, what I thought you might like for your birthday. We tossed a few ideas around before settling on the two gifts you’ll ultimately have gotten by the end of the night, the first being time alone that appears to have been well spent, but Jasper said he wasn’t making a final decision on that one to begin with until he knew Edward wouldn’t be around to see any possible vision you might have and try to stop the two of you. Emmett helped by getting the condoms, and I helped by finding a way to get Edward out of the house.” Bella explained, and I hugged her.

“Never have I been so grateful for people going behind my back!” I said as we hugged, and she laughed before we looked at each other, nodded, and opened our arms to Rosalie.

“C’mon, Rose, group hug!” we chorused, and our elder sister laughed lightly before joining in on our hug.

If we ended up in a pile on the floor of my closet, the boys would never know.

Once Bella and I were dressed, we went downstairs and got in her truck. Rosalie said that Bella’s truck would be better off in a junkyard, but she didn’t argue when I told her that Edward didn’t want Jessica Stanley within ten feet of the Volvo and that neither Bella nor I were going to drive Emmett’s Jeep as humans. As we left, we saw her sliding under her BMW to give it an oil change. I couldn’t help but think what the populous of Forks High would think if they could see her like this.

Unlike the beaches in Mississippi, it was still cold when we reached First Beach and parked. Angela and Ben were both sitting inside the Crowleys’ new van when we got out of the truck, and Angela made a beeline for me once she saw that we had arrived. She threw her arms around me in excitement once I was within reach, and Bella had the decency to at least try hiding her laughter.

“Happy birthday, Alice!” Angela said quietly, but enthusiastically.

“Thanks, Ange.” I replied. “Is everyone else in the water?”

“Mike and Tyler are trying to surf, unsuccessfully, and Eric’s videotaping them failing. Jess and Lauren are attempting to tan, and Jen and Katie are in a splash war.” Ben said as he greeted us.

“I think they’re crazy with it still being this cold, but I gave up on stopping them a long time ago.” Angela added, rolling her eyes at her friends.

“They won’t be the first Pale Faces to catch a cold after trying to surf here in March.” a familiar voice called, and I turned around to see Jacob Black walking towards us with a group of his friends, Sam being the one who had spoken.

“Did you guys at least give Sue a warning about all this?” I called back, and Sam gave me a nod.

“Yeah, she’s not exactly thrilled, especially since she’s warned Lauren, but she’s making sure that Cathy’s preparing the other parents.” he said, and I noticed the way Jacob flinched when my aunt was mentioned.

“Jake, she’s not replacing your mother, okay? Billy deserves to be happy, too, and if my aunt is what makes him happy, then so be it.” I told him, and he frowned.

“I know, honestly, I do, but I never thought that I’d see my dad get so caught up on a woman who wasn’t my mom. Five years doesn’t feel like it’s as long as it really is, ya know?” he replied.

“At least the woman your dad’s at the very least crushing on isn’t married.” Bella said, and all of the tan-skinned boys chuckled.

“Charlie’s feelings for Sue is the worst kept secret in Washington State, no lie!” one of the boys, a jovial guy near Sam’s age who had clearly already phased, said.

“Jared’s not wrong.” another, this one closer to Jacob’s age and clearly pre-phasing, said. “I was helping Seth with his homework the other day, and he told me that he overheard Harry talking to Old Quil about at least knowing that Sue and the kids would be taken care of if something ever happened to him.”

“I’m lost.” Ben finally said, and we all laughed.

“We should’ve done introductions, sorry.” Bella said, shaking her head with a smile. “This is Jacob Black, one of my best friends since childhood and the son of my dad’s best friend.”

“Hi, it’s nice to meet you all. As that conversation may have implied, my dad is keeping his not-so-secret relationship with Lauren’s mom very poorly hidden from us kids.” Jacob said, and Angela and Ben chuckled.

“I’m Sam Uley, and this is my little brother, Embry Call.” Sam said, introducing us to the one who’d mentioned Seth. “We’re friends of Alice, Bella, and Jake.”

“I’m Jared Cameron, Sam’s best friend, and this is Quil, Embry and Jake’s best friend.” Jared told us, indicating himself and the last boy who’d yet to say anything and was also pre-phasing.

“It’s nice to meet you guys.” Ben started. “I’m Ben Cheney.”

“I’m Angela Weber, the best friend either of these two have at school outside the Cullens.” Angela added, inclining her head towards Bella and me. “Even if Alice is a Cullen herself.”

“Lauren’s down on the beach with her best friend Jessica, and the two trying to surf are Mike and Tyler.” Bella told the current and future pack members. “The two girls trying to drowned each other are Katie and Jennifer.”

“I’m gonna go find Lauren.” Embry said suddenly. “I gotta see if she can help Seth with his math this week since my mom and I are going to see my grandma.”

“Quil, go with him so he doesn’t embarrass himself.” Jacob said after Embry had hurried off, and Quil chuckled. “I thought we were all capable of doing seventh grade math, but he’ll use any excuse to go talk to his crush.”

“I think that’s the second worst kept secret in Washington State right there.” he said as he followed Embry.

“Okay, now that we’ve eliminated the two who don’t know and don’t need to know before their time, Alice, what do I smell?” Sam asked, and I looked over at Angela and Ben.

“I have an idea, but I think it’d be best to let them tell us on their own. Ange, Ben?” I responded, and they sighed.

“We’re merpeople.” they chorused. “What are you?”

“We’re shapeshifters, into giant wolves, descended from Spirit Warriors.” Sam said, pointing to Jared and himself. “Jake’s got a few more months before he’ll be ready, my best guess, and Bella and Alice are on their way to becoming vampires.”

“What the hell are you guys talking about?” Jacob asked, and the whole group let out a collective sigh.

“You know all those legends our parents used to tell us as bedtime stories? Taha Aki, the Third Wife, and the Cold Ones?” Sam asked, and Jacob nodded. “They’re all true. Ask your dad if you don’t believe us, but they are true.”

“So, you guys turn into giant wolves?” Jacob asked nervously, getting a nod from Sam. “And I’m going to be one too?”

“From what I’ve seen, you’re going to be a rather large wolf with reddish-brown fur.” I told him.

“Alice is a psychic, as is her aunt, though her gift is significantly more advanced than Cathy’s.” Sam explained.

“So, we’re letting her become a psychic vampire?” Jacob asked, and Sam nodded.

“She’s already foreseen it, and the treaty won’t be violated due to the wording of it. I checked.” he said, and Bella snorted.

“Until I met Alice, I never believed my mother when she told me that childbirth is a bitch.” she said, and Sam’s eyes snapped towards me.

“What would a child born of a human and a vampire even be?” he asked, worried.

“They’re called Dhampir, and you can’t touch them. Bella and Edward’s daughter is the oldest of the three our coven will have, and Jacob will be the one to make sure that you can’t touch or harm her in any way. She’s going to be a very territorial little girl once she’s been conceived, and it won’t take him long to look at her once she’s been born. In the vision I had of her a year ago, she will only refer to him as, and I quote, ‘My Jacob.’” I said, and Sam looked over at Jared before they both looked over at Jacob.

“Shit, guys, whatever I’m gonna do, I’m sorry.” Jacob started to apologize, but the two older boys waived him off and chuckled.

“It’s nothing that you can control, Jake, and we’re not mad. We were concerned for Bella and Alice, but they seem to have everything under control.” Jared said. “Do you remember how I barely even knew Kim one day and couldn’t say two sentences without talking about her the next?”

“Yeah, we were all annoyed as hell for a solid week.” Jacob replied.

“One of the traits we take on when we become one with the wolf, as I’ve been calling it, is the fact that we are entirely monogamous and mate for life. It’s called imprinting, and when you look into the eyes of your destined imprint for the first time, she becomes the center of your universe. It doesn’t matter if you’re dating someone else, have a crush on someone else, or despise everything about this person once you’ve imprinted. The only thing you care about, the one thing that determines whether you have a good or bad day, is her happiness.” Jared told him.

“From what I understand from the conversation I had with Alice and Jasper when I thanked them for helping me after I slashed Emily’s face on accident, yes, Jake, I was the one who did that when I accidentally phased in front of her, vampires aren’t that different on the mating aspect. Before a vampire meets their true mate, they can have any number of partners. Some might even believe themselves to be in love, but it’s different with their mate. They become highly territorial, extremely protective, and exceedingly focused on their mate. If someone were to try to harm their mate or take their mate from them, the vampire would become enraged and lash out in any number of ways, not one of which is ever considered good.” Sam added, and Jacob chuckled as he looked at the ground instead of at any of us.

“So, since she’s half vampire, she’s going to be possessive as hell and try to claw out the eyes of any other girl who tried to flirt with me?” he asked, and Bella reached over to smack him in the back of the head.

“You’re likely to be just as bad, Jake.” she told him. “As your future mother-in-law, I think I’ll keep a tally of each time one of you gets jealous.”

“Am I gonna be the only one with scary in-laws?” Jacob asked me, and I shrugged.

“By the time three years have gone by, there’s gonna be at least fifteen wolves on this reservation. One of them, which one I have no clue, is probably going to imprint on Emmett and Rosalie’s soon-to-be adopted daughter Bree, and Seth Clearwater is going to imprint on Cynthia.” I admitted. “If Embry’s crush isn’t just a crush, his will be Lauren.”

“Doesn’t that one make me the scary in-law?” he asked, laughing.

“Hey, at least you haven’t known your in-laws since before you could walk or talk.” Angela broke in, and Ben raised an eyebrow at her.

“You love my parents, and they love you.” he said, and she nodded.

“It’s true, but your mom’s always on me about how ‘the future of the pod’s survival is entirely on the two of you since we don’t know is Danny or Davey are going to have tails when the time comes’ and asking when we’re going to pick a wedding date; last week, she wanted to know if we were even going to stay with the pod or start out own. I want to go to college and see a bit more of the world before we start thinking about children. Don’t you?” Angela replied, and Ben agreed.

“Ma can be a little pushy sometimes. We’ve got more than enough time before settling down should even be an option.” he said, and I had an idea.

“What are all of you guys doing on Sunday afternoon?” I asked.

“After church, our pod usually drives out here and takes the trail to Second Beach since it’s usually slightly less crowded so we can all go for a swim.” Angela said.

“Other than patrolling the woods for those nomads, nothing for us.” Sam said.

“It’s baseball season, so my dad’s at Cathy’s most nights because that’s where he, Charlie, Sue, and Harry gather to watch games, but Sundays outside of football season are usually lazy days around the house for us.” Jacob said last, and I grinned.

“I’ll have to make a phone call when I get home, and run it by my parents, but how would you guys feel about setting up a Supernatural Council Meeting of sorts for next Sunday? The witches would probably have to Skype in, but it could work. We even have a saltwater pool in the backyard if that would make you guys feel more comfortable.” I asked, and the idea wasn’t appalling to them.

“We’ll have to run it by our parents, but it sounds like it could be good for all of us.” Angela said, Ben nodding along beside her.

“I’ll bring it up to Billy when I take Jake home. It’s not like it’ll be the first time we’ve gone to your place to discuss matters of the supernatural.” Sam agreed, and I looked to Bella.

“You in, little sister?” I asked, and she grinned.

“I’m in, Ali.” she promised. “I’ll even take one for the team and be the one to tell Edward to tell Rosalie.”

When Bella and I got home later that evening, we walked into the kitchen to find the rest of our vampire family standing together and whispering excitedly about something. They turned to face us as pulled away from the countertop as we neared, Bella immediately going to Edward’s side, and I found myself facing a happy surprise. Two cupcakes were sitting on a plate on the counter with a candle in each, one being a one and the other being a seven.

“Happy birthday, sweetheart.” Esme told me.

“Make a wish, Poppet.” Carlisle added, and I giggled before blowing out the candles and wishing for something I already knew I’d always have.

“Considering that your wish might as well have been a cop-out, I hope that this is a suitable gift.” Edward teased as he handed me a gift box topped with a bright yellow bow.

Opening it, I found three new sketchbooks for me to fill with my visions. I had begun getting close to filling the one I had, so these would definitely get put to use in no time at all. They were thick and of good quality, so I had hopes of them lasting me for a year or so once I started drawing in them.

“Thanks, Edward.” I said with a grin, and Rosalie took her turn to hand me a larger gift box that, when I opened it, was revealed to have a gray silk dress inside that I had seen the last time my older sister and I had gone shopping.

“That dress looks amazing on you, and your birthday is the perfect opportunity for me to tell you to stop worrying about what other people think of your body. I’m fairly certain that there’s only one person’s opinion on that subject who matters to you anyway, and you know how he feels.” she told me with a sly grin. “Happy birthday.”

“Look inside the box, under the dress.” Emmett said, and I did so to find a copy of _The Tenant of Wildfell Hall_ nestled in the bottom of the box. “It’s a 1920s first edition from Lasting Worlds publishers, and I know it’s one of your favorite books. I figured that we could discuss this one next if your up for a challenge.”

“This is amazing, Em, and thank you.” I replied. “Start prepping for debate topics surrounding gossip-mongers and the double standard for fidelity in a relationship for men versus women.”

“Challenge accepted.” Emmett said with a chuckle.

Esme went next, presenting me with a small, square box. I opened it to find a circular dandelion charm hanging from the end of a long, platinum chain. Looking up, I noticed that it matched the ones that she and Rosalie were wearing.

“There’s one more in the set, and that one will be given to its rightful owner in September to commemorate her first birthday as a part of this family.” Esme said, and I immediately slipped the chain over my head and let the charm fall to the top of my breastbone.

“It’s beautiful, Mom, and I love it.” I said as Carlisle handed me a gift box similar in size to the book Emmett had given me, perhaps a bit larger.

“Much like what you mother has just said, I have made it a tradition of sorts to present a new family member with a special gift on their first official birthday as a part of this family.” he told me as I removed the lid from the box and gazed down upon an embossed leather notebook.

The symbol on the journal’s light gray face was a golden triskele. Often seen as yet another symbol of the Holy Trinity, the triskele’s triadic nature and more ancient symbolism of the cycle of life, death, and rebirth translated to a rather perfect symbol for vampires; I was sure that this hadn’t escaped my father’s notice, and I smiled at the thought that had gone into his gift. Opening it up to the first page, I saw that he had also written something in the journal: _Adoption is a powerful thing; choosing to love a child that was not born to you is incredible. A child choosing to love you as her parents despite not being born to you is even more so. You chose us, Alice, and we’ve never been happier. May this birthday be the first of many for you in this family. Happy Birthday, Poppet. With all the love in our hearts, Mom & Dad._

“I love you guys so much!” I said as I set my new journal down and moved around the kitchen island to hug both of my parents, grateful to have two people who loved me so much as to claim me as one of their own from the day we met without question.

The cupcakes had been delicious, and my birthday had ended on a high note. Edward left for Bella’s around midnight, and Rosalie and Emmett had gone to look for signs of the nomadic coven under the guise of going hunting not long after this. I seized my opportunity and asked Jasper, Carlisle, and Esme about the idea I’d had at the beach.

“While this isn’t something we’d previously considered, it makes sense to do it.” Esme said, smiling proudly. “In addition to being able to warn one another about potential threats, it would be nice to have some adult friends nearby. You did good, sweetheart.”

“Your mother is right, as usual, and I must confess that having a sort of conference like this never occurred to me. You’d think, after the number of medical conferences I’ve attended that I’d have thought of this myself years ago!” Carlisle added with a smile of his own. “Very well thought out, Poppet, and I am very proud. Jasper, what do you think?”

“I think that having a good working relationship with other members of the supernatural community is a good idea. Now, groups like traditional werewolves will never be able to be brought in on something like this if only because they have no restraint. That being said, I’ve always thought that Aro was making a mistake by acting as though we’re superior to other beings instead of embracing the non-humanness that ties us all together. Mermaids have senses just as good as us or the wolves, so I’d be wiling to bet that the Cheney family and Weber women have known the truth about us since we moved to town. If they’ve kept our secret for this long, I feel that we can trust them.” Jasper answered, but I knew he still worried about the wolves.

“I think it was more or less implied that Paul would be left behind to watch the rez, and potentially Jared as well, when Sam and I spoke today. Jared’s nice, but he also the only one capable of keeping Paul in check most of the time, too.” I said, and he relaxed a bit.

“If the other two sides agree, I see no problem with hosting this meeting next Sunday.” Esme said, sighing as she continued. “The only problem now is figuring out who’s going to tell Rosalie about this and how.”

“Bella volunteered to make Edward do it.” I told her, and the four of us laughed together for a few minutes before I let out a yawn.

“On that note, it’s bedtime for the human.” Jasper teased, and I responded by leaning further into his side.

Monday morning was bright and full of warm sunshine. After getting the go-ahead from Esme, I sent Angela and Bella each a text letting them know that we’d be at home. During lunch, they called me and asked if I’d go with them to Port Angeles on Saturday to shop for prom despite the facts of it being the day after Sweethearts and of Bella, Rosalie, and I already having dresses. I agreed to go, knowing that Jasper would probably follow us along with Edward just to make sure that we were safe with the nomads being so close. Angela had volunteered to drive, so we wouldn’t have to deal with Jessica being at the house and trying to snoop, and I told them both that I’d see them later. This week had already started out on a good note, I thought as a pair of strong, scarred arms pulled me backwards across the bed while I sketched a drawing of Edward and Bella dancing at prom, and I giggled as Jasper set his chin on my shoulder and watched.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Well, sweets, here we have it. I hope you all are enjoying the story! Until next time!


	10. Risk Assessment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Heart don't fail me now/Courage don't desert me/Don't turn back now that we're here/People always say/Life is full of choices/No one ever mentions fear/Or how the world can seem so vast/On a journey to the past..."  
>  -"Journey to the Past," Liz Callaway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Rosalie's story is detailed in this chapter and may be a trigger for some readers.

By Thursday, everyone we’d invited had agreed to the Sunday meeting; Jared and Paul would be staying behind, but Sam would be bringing Billy and Jacob along as they had the most involvement with securing the alliance. Friday, Bella went home with us again, Edward having picked her up for school that morning, to get ready for Sweethearts that night. All three boys left to hunt as we were doing our hair and makeup, jobs that Rosalie and I divided up between the two of us while Bella was in charge of jewelry. While prom required floor-length gowns, Sweethearts allowed for us to wear shorter dresses with a better range of movement.

Bella’s dress was a dark navy done in a Hi-Lo cut that had a short underskirt and a longer, sheer overskirt that ran up to the solid band around her waist that separated the sheer fabric from the lace top. I had convinced her to wear a pair of Mary-Jane pumps with the dress that had a modest heel, and I had kept her makeup minimal. Rosalie had curled Bella’s hair before she put small, lose braids in it that she then connected to gather the sections together in a half-updo style. Bella picked out her own jewelry, simple diamond studs and a silver locket, and we declared her ready for her first Forks High school dance.

Rosalie’s dress was hot-rod red, one-shoulder, and covered in a layer of lace. The hemline came to somewhere around three inches above her knee, and she paired it with a pair of strappy, gold, heeled Steve Madden sandals. She had let me do her makeup, and I had used a dark, glittering brown shadow and dark liquid liner on her eyes and a bold red on her lips; I used just enough of a pale pink blush to make her appear more alive and human, but stopped after that as to not hide my older sister’s natural beauty, even if it was supernaturally enhanced. She did her own hair, pulling it all into an intricate knot of curls at the base of her neck. Bella had carefully gone through Rosalie’s jewelry box to find a series of items that would work well aesthetically; her selection ended up being a pair of gold wrist cuffs and a pair of gold hoop earrings. With the angle of the dress’ neckline, Bella had foregone a necklace for Rosalie, and our sister approved. The only addition she made was that of a small, heart-shaped ruby ring in a gold setting. It had been a gift, she told us, from Emmett for their second anniversary.

My dress was somewhere between those of my sisters. It was a soft yellow with a lace bodice and flowy skirt; the top had thin straps, about an inch in width, and was cut into a sweetheart neckline. My shoes were a pair of metallic sliver heels; they had been a gift from Rosalie that I had asked to not know the price of when I’d first taken them from their box. There wasn’t much that Rosalie could do with my hair given how short I kept it, so she put my hair into tight, polished curls and settled a crystal headband on my head. Bella noticed this and matched my jewelry by selecting a pair of small, filigree silver and gold hoops and a matching bracelet; I slipped my butterfly locket from Jasper over my head to complete the look before double-checking my makeup. The shadow on my eyes was a blend of sliver, gold, and rosy pink tones that went well with the petal pink of my lips. I didn’t do much more than this because I knew Jasper felt the same way I did about cake-thick layers of makeup and knew that there were better ways for me to spend my night than scrubbing product off my face.

“Well, we’re all done, and I think we look amazing.” Rosalie said as we walked downstairs.

“You girls look beautiful.” Esme said as we joined her and Carlisle in the formal living room.

“They’re our daughters, darling, so what else could they be if not beautiful?” Carlisle asked teasingly, Esme swatting his shoulder gently.

“I want to get a picture of just you girls, and then I’ll get one of just the boys when they get back. Once that’s done, I want at least one of each couple, and then lastly a group photo.” Esme told us, and we posed as she asked.

From the second we’d entered the Forks High gym, I could feel Jessica Stanley’s glare. Edward said that she was jealous that he’d brought Bella to the dance, and I believed him. Jessica hadn’t bothered to hide how much she disliked the attention Bella received from our male classmates upon her initial arrival. She had brought Mike as her date, though he himself was paying Bella far more attention than he should’ve been and was being glared at by Edward every few minutes. Lauren had come to the dance with Tyler, though it was clear that she didn’t want to be his date, and was standing with Jessica in equal annoyance at how Sweethearts was going. The current focus of their shared ire were Rosalie and Emmett, and Edward snickered beside Jasper and me as he told me and Bella about the varying comments the two were making about our sister’s dress.

“If I had legs like Rosalie’s, I’d show them off, too.” Bella remarked, and I agreed.

“Plus, it defeats the point of Rose wearing that dress if they don’t make comments. You know as well as I do, she would much rather be at home in her garage clothes replacing the clutch in her BMW than at a high school dance.” I added, and both Edward and Jasper agreed before Edward whisked Bella away for a dance.

I watched all of my siblings, intrigued, as the night continued. Bella was far from confident, but Edward’s reassurance was all she needed to allow herself to have fun. After having dealt with his lamentations the year before about dealing with Rosalie and Emmett while fending off unwanted advances from the likes of Lauren and Jessica, it was also nice to see my brother actually enjoy a school function. In contrast to Edward and Bella, my other set of siblings were old hats at school dances. They were enjoying themselves on the outside, but I knew that Rosalie was really only at the dance to act as both morale support for Bella and to remind some of the other girls that Emmett was most definitely hers. Emmett, though he wasn’t ordinarily the subtlest of our family, was busy planning something that I had a suspicion only Edward knew about with any degree of certainty. We were all on the floor, dancing to Atomic Kitten’s cover of Blondie’s “The Tide Is High,” Emmett made eye-contact with me and caused a vision to spring to my mind. Jasper masterfully handled the situation by lifting me ever so slightly so that we stayed moving whilst I was mid-vision. **I could see Emmett sitting in the garage as Rosalie worked on her car. He handed her the tools she asked for and listened to her rant about whatever the dumbass at the auto parts store had said to her when she’d been there while she worked, but he also fiddled with the golden band on his left hand ring finger the whole time. When Rose closed the hood on the BMW, he smiled and asked if she wanted to go for a hunt. She told him to let her change, and they could go. The vision skipped forward to the two of them walking through the forest on their way home, a slight hint of blood on Emmett’s collar the sign of a successful hunt. They spoke of how much our family would change in the coming years, and Rosalie was clearly excited about becoming a mother. They stopped mid-walk, and Emmett reached out for Rosalie’s hand. He knelt down on one knee before her with her rose gold engagement ring in hand, and she smiled softly.**

**“ _Of all the changes we’re about to go through, angel, the way I feel about you won’t be one of them. Marry me one more time?_ ” he asked, and she nodded.**

**“ _I would love nothing more, baby._ ” she answered, and he slid her engagement ring back onto her hand.**

I smiled as the vision ended, happy to now know what my brother was planning on doing, and I gave him a nod as he spun Rosalie again. A few minutes later, Bella pulled me away for a human moment, and the two of us happened to be in the ladies room when Lauren and Jessica entered a few minutes later. They two were discussing their dissatisfaction with their evening, and it took everything in me to not laugh out loud. Bella and I exited our stalls after we heard Jessica and Lauren each latch theirs, and I could see that my sister was in a similar state to my own.

“-ean, would it kill Mike to look at me like he keeps looking at Bella? Even better, would it kill Bella to do the right thing and just leave Edward for Mike so things can be as God intended?” we heard Jessica ask, and Bella rolled her eyes.

“I know, and isn’t it obvious that Alice has got to be putting out for Jasper to keep her? I mean, it’s been a year, and there is no amount of pity that can keep a relationship going on for that long. I hope for his sake that she’s at least good at whatever it is she does that keeps him with her.” my cousin said, and Bella looked over at me with an amused grin.

‘I am very good at what I do, and so is he.’ I mouthed, and she laughed silently.

“It so is!” Jessica replied. “Maybe she’s learned a thing or two after living with Rosalie? It takes a slut to know a slut, right?”

“Totally!” Lauren agreed, and Bella and I straightened up as the two exited their stalls.

“Hi, girls!” I greeted with fake enthusiasm. “How’s your night going?”

“They seem to be having the best time out there with Mike and Tyler.” Bella said in the same tone as me.

“How long have you two been here?” Lauren asked, nervous.

“Laur, we were here before the two of you. We heard everything.” I told my cousin, and she huffed.

“So, since you were eavesdropping, are we right?” she asked, and I smirked.

“Not really. I don’t have to have sex with Jasper for him to stick around, but it’s a much-enjoyed perk.” I told her, reveling in the way hers and Jessica’s eyes bugged out like saucers. “But, as you did get one right, we’re both very good at it.”

Bella snickered beside me, obviously to me prepping her response to Jessica in her mind. The curly-haired girl had clearly thought that we’d forgotten her statements about my brother, but she was sorely mistaken. If she was any indicator for my niece’s future behavior, Bella could be very territorial when it came to her mate. Of course, none of us were truly any better; Esme was honestly the worst of us all.

“Jess, as your friend, I am going to tell you politely to back the fuck off my relationship with Edward.” my sister said firmly. “He chose me, and I chose him. If you continue to push, I won’t be so polite the next time we have this conversation.”

We started towards the door, the two of them stunned into silence, when a thought struck me. I grabbed Bella’s arm lightly and stopped short of leaving the ladies room. Turning around, I held up my hand to motion for my cousin and her friend to remain silent.

“I don’t care what you say about me when you think no one else can hear you, but if you ever call my sister a slut again, I will retaliate. You don’t know Rosalie’s past, and you don’t know her. Keep your opinions of my sister to yourself.” I told them quietly before turning to Bella, nodding, and returning to the dance.

“Tomorrow’s going to be interesting.” I said to Jasper in between trips to the dancefloor a little while later, and he chuckled.

“What you’d classify as interesting, Darlin’, is probably closer to the average person’s idea of chaos.” he told me, and I shrugged as I leaned against him.

“Well, just looking at the company I keep, what else would you expect?” I asked teasingly, and he tightened his arms around my midsection.

“From you, nothin’ less than complete madness, my frightening little monster.” Jasper said quietly as the song changed.

“Dance with me?” I asked, and he responded by leading me back out onto the dancefloor.

“Isn’t this one of your favorite songs?” Jasper asked as the soft melody played, and I nodded before singing along.

“Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight/Lead me out on the moonlit floor/Lift your open hand/Strike up the band, and make the fireflies dance/Silvermoon's sparkling/So kiss me…” as I sang the last line, Jasper leaned in and pecked my lips before spinning me out and twirling me back into him.

I pouted when did this, and he chuckled. He directed his emotions at me, and I giggled. It might take another hour or two at the dance, but he’d more than promised to give me a real kiss and then some once we were alone.

Hours later, under the light of the stars and the fairy lights in the tent, Jasper told me that all four of the vampires at the dance had heard mine and Bella’s run-in with Lauren and Jessica and were proud of the way we handled the two human girls. Rosalie had been surprised when I’d stood up for her, he said, and she wanted to speak with Bella and I about her past. I knew the basics of what she had gone through courtesy of Esme back when she and I were bonding over our traumas, but I also knew that it meant something to Rosalie to share her past with us willingly.

“Edward needed me to knock him back into the present when he heard Bella swearin’ at Jessica, but Emmett and I thought she did an admirable job. Rose agreed with us, but she was in a fit of giggles over Edward’s reaction.” Jasper told me, and I laughed lightly at his words.

“All three of us girls are our mother’s daughters, honey, and we don’t know how to be polite when some dumb bitch like Jessica Stanley oversteps her bounds.” I told him, and he chuckled. “I would guess that you’ve got a comment or two about what Lauren said, so tell me.”

“You are the one person who has ever truly felt my every emotion, Darlin’, so I know that you know that there is no room for pity in this relationship.” he told me, pausing to give me a devilish smirk. “But I do have to agree that the sex is amazing.”

Not long after that, we returned home. I needed to get at least a few hours of sleep before going to Port Angeles, and Angela was picking Bella and me up at half-past ten. Emmett and Rosalie were heading out into the forest when Angela arrived, and I knew what was going to happen based on their outfits. I hugged my brother and sister, giving Emmett an encouraging nod, before following Bella and our mates down to the garage. Jasper and Edward were driving to Seattle to go shopping for some new baseball equipment while Bella and I were going to Port Angeles, and they’d planned their trip so that it wouldn’t be suspicious if they ran into us while we were shopping.

“If Ben finds you guys, could you just bring him along? He went for a swim this morning after getting into a fight with Mike Newton after that idiot wouldn’t shut up about how you ‘stole’ the love of his life.” Angela asked Edward, and he gave her a nod. “If Ben’s distracted, he sometimes doesn’t realize how far he’s swam.”

“It’s not a problem, Angela.” my brother told her.

“Thank you, seriously. The last thing I need right now is my mate getting picked up by a fishing trawler and ending up in a government lab.” Angela replied, and I laughed.

“That’s exactly how I feel when I know Jasper and our brothers are going hunting together!” I said. “They get so wrapped up in their horseplay that they don’t always pay attention!”

“Thankfully, she’s never really gotta worry about us getting’ caught since Edward and I both have additional gifts that tell us when someone’s too near.” Jasper remarked.

“We’ll table that until the meeting tomorrow because we need to get going.” Angela laughed.

“We’ll catch up with you ladies later.” Edward said as the three of us got into our mermaid friend’s car while he and Jasper got into the Volvo.

Bella had volunteered to sit in the back with Lauren and Jessica, so the car ride to Port Angeles was not nearly as bad as it could’ve been. The first few dress shops we entered were quickly written off by my cousin after seeing the prices of a few dresses. While the Mallorys were by no means poor, Aunt Catherine had severely tightened up on spending habits after Uncle Michael’s death. Lauren was many things, but she was never one to blatantly ignore the boundaries set by her mother for clothes. Jessica, however, had no such compunctions and pouted each time Lauren urged us to leave a shop. As we were walking down West 1st Street, a brightly painted storefront caught my eye, and I signaled to the other girls to stop.

“What about here?” I asked, and Angela moved towards the door.

“What’ve we got to lose.” she said, and the rest of us followed her into the little boutique.

Inside, the small shop was bursting with clothing options. Lauren, Jessica, and Angela went to look at the formalwear section, and Bella had quickly become absorbed in a rack of earrings, so I browsed the shop until such time as Angela called out to Bella and me. Each of them had a dress in hand, and Bella suggested that they go to the fitting rooms while she and I went to sit by the mirrors near the front of the store. Jessica was the first one out, her choice being a hot pink halter neck dress with a deep V going down the front that showed plenty of cleavage. Angela followed, her choice a periwinkle empire waist gown with a beaded lace top and flowing skirt; the back of the top was completely lace, and it looked good on her tall frame. Lauren was last, and her dress was a sage green halter neck dress that wrapped around her torso and crisscrossed over her back; it had an earthiness to it that my cousin normally didn’t lean towards, but the dress looked amazing on her, nonetheless.

“Well?” Angela asked, and I smiled.

“You all look great. Now, we just need to run through the cardinal rules of shopping to make sure that these are the ones you want.” I said, nudging Bella to participate. “Rule Number One, does your dress fit within your price point?”

“Yeah, it’s on the higher end of the budget, but it’s there.” Jessica said about her dress.

“It’s a good bit under budget.” Angela said about hers.

“You know that I wouldn’t have even put it on if it wasn’t within range.” Lauren told me, and I chuckled.

“Valid point, Laur.” I admitted.

“Rule Number Two, do you feel comfortable in your dress?” Bella asked, and I beamed proudly at her.

“Rose is going to be so happy that you actually remembered the rules!” I told her, and she lightly shoved my shoulder while grinning.

“I love this dress; it makes my boobs look great.” Jessica gushed as she admired herself in the mirror.

“I think this one’s perfect; the color looks good on me, and this won’t be super hard for Ben to match.” Angela noted.

“You guys don’t think that this one shows too much, do you?” Lauren asked, plucking at the green fabric near her breasts as she stared into the mirror.

“I don’t think it shows enough, personally, but it looks nice on you.” Jessica told her, and I sighed.

“It’s more than appropriate, Lauren, enough so that I doubt even Arrière-grand-mère could find fault with it.” I said, and she nodded slowly. “If you love it but feel unsure about the top, I’m sure that you or your mom can put a stitch in it to hold it closed a certain amount.”

Lauren let out a breath and nodded again, and the three of them seemed content with their dress selections. They modeled in front of the mirrors for a few more minutes before a sudden rapping on the glass made us all jump. A group of five or six guys were staring through the window at us and wolf-whistling at Lauren, Jessica, and Angela until the girls were visibly uncomfortable. The shop’s owner walked outside to run the men off, and Bella and I urged the three to get changed.

“If you get changed, we can get out of here before those morons come back.” I told them.

“It could be a bit before we’ve changed and paid for these dresses, so you guys can go on ahead and go to the bookshop Bella was talking about in the car and then just meet us at the restaurant in half an hour?” Angela said, and I looked to my sister.

“Bells?” I asked, and she nodded.

“Sure, we can do that. Everybody’s got a cellphone, right?” she replied, and we all answered with an affirmative.

“Then I guess we’ll see you guys at the restaurant.” I said to my cousin and our friends before walking out of the shop with my sister.

The Thunderbird & Whale bookstore was a nice for such a small shop. Sam had recommended the place to us when he’d confirmed that he, Billy, and Jacob would be a part of our Sunday meeting, and there was a book that Bella and I found that detailed the legends of the Quileute tribe. Bella bought it, and we left the store to either meet up with our mates or find our friends. We cut down the alley across from the bookstore to get back to the main road where the restaurant was when a group of guys went past us. They backed up two seconds later, and I grabbed Bella’s arm.

“Walk the other way as quickly as you can.” I told her, and we turned around before speed walking back the way we’d came.

“Hey!” one of the guys called. “Didn’t we see you at the dress store?”

“Ignore them, Bella, and don’t stop walking.” I whispered, not letting my sister’s arm go.

“Where’re you going?” a second called, and I felt my breath hitch in my throat as we stepped into a curve surrounded by dark, seedy looking places.

“Alice, we’re gonna be okay. The boys can’t be too far at this point.” Bella whispered, and I wanted to believe her.

The group of guys surrounded us, and I prayed for a vision to tell me what would happen next. No vision came, and Bella shoved a few of the guys away while curling herself around me as much as she could manage like the human shield that she and I knew that she technically was. Suddenly, tires squealed against the pavement as a familiar silver Volvo swerved around the corner. Most of the guys backed away, and the two front doors flew open as Jasper and Edward stepped out of the car.

“Get in.” Edward ordered, and I began pulling Bella towards the Volvo, shoving her into the front passenger seat before getting into the backseat.

“That was a might dangerous…maneuver…” one of the pervy guys started to say, but Jasper had grabbed him by the collar and lifted him into the air.

“People like you used to be the type I never regretted killin’. I promised my mother that I’d never kill someone again, but you’re makin’ this very difficult; you went after my baby sister and my wife, and I know every sick, desperate thing you’ve felt since layin’ eyes on them just as my little brother here knows what you’ve been thinkin’. My baby sister is his wife, so he’s about as pissed off as I am right now. Here’s the real question: do we let you pathetic excuses for men live?” I heard Jasper ask the group.

“They definitely want us to, and Mom and Dad would be awfully disappointed if we killed them.” Edward added coolly, and Jasper dropped the guy he’d been holding to the ground. “Plus, do we want the girls to bear witness to this?”

“Consider yourselves lucky.” Jasper told them before stalking back towards the car and sliding in beside me.

Edward followed, getting in the driver’s seat and whipping out onto the main road in seconds. We rode in silence until Edward pulled into a parking spot beside Angela’s car at the Italian restaurant that Jessica had picked out for dinner. Both of the boys let out breaths they didn’t need before hugging us, and I knew that Bella melted as easily into Edward as I had into Jasper.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been that scared.” I heard Jasper say, and I looked up at him with reassurance in my eyes.

“You were there to save me, honey, and everything is going to be okay. You weren’t even close to losing control with those idiots; I would’ve seen it.” I told him, moving to sit in his lap.

“Charlie’s got the right idea. When I picked Bella up for school yesterday, he was thinking of getting her a thing of either pepper spray or mace.” Edward said after a moment passed us by in a tense silence, and we all laughed.

Feeling better after having a laugh, the four of us went up to the restaurant where Angela was pacing nervously by the front door while Ben leaned against the wall behind her. Lauren and Jessica were nowhere in sight. Ben cleared his throat, getting Angela’s attention, and inclined his head towards us. The mermaid looked at us with such relief that I knew Jasper could feel it.

“Oh, sweet Jesus, you’re alright! Ben heard what was going on and came to find me after you guys took off in the car.” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around Bella and me.

“Thanks to my gift, Alice has a built-in panic button. The second she started feeling scared, I knew and told Edward that we needed to hurry.” Jasper said, doing his best to ease her fears.

“Where’d Jess and Lauren go?” I asked, and Angela sighed.

“I sent them inside. They were hungry, and I was too freaked out to eat, so I told them to grab us a table for eight.” she said, and I snickered. “What’d I miss?”

“Jessica seems to think that Bella should break up with me so that things can ‘be as God intended,’ meaning that Jessica would be my new girlfriend in her slightly askew view of the world. She said this, not knowing Bella and Alice were in the ladies room at the same time as her last night, and Bella might’ve threatened her.” Edward explained, a small smile playing at his lips as he spoke.

“I didn’t threaten her, per say, as much as I told her politely to keep her appendages and thoughts to herself.” Bella said quietly as we stepped through the front door.

“I threatened them both, but it was because they said some awful and hurtful things about my big sister.” I admitted. “Rosalie’s been through too much for their petty name calling.”

My brother agreed with me silently, and Jasper gave my hand a reassuring squeeze as we joined Lauren and Jessica at a large, round table. The two of them were seated next to one another, and Angela took the seat beside Jessica while Ben took the seat beside her. Bella sat down beside Ben, and Edward sat beside her. Another silent, quick conversation with my brother was all it took for me to sit down beside my cousin and leave the last chair for Jasper.

“If I’d have known you boys were going to be here, I’d have invited Mike and Tyler!” Jessica said in a fake squeal of delight.

“Ben went with us to pick up some sports equipment in Seattle, custom stuff that our dad ordered over a month ago, and we dropped him off with Angela out front before going by the bookstore to pick up Alice and Bella.” Edward lied seamlessly.

“I knew they were going to Seattle, so I told them that they could join us if they were in Port Angeles in time.” Angela said, going along with Edward’s lie with ease.

“Now that we’re all here, though, let’s take a look at this menu.” Ben said as a transition, and Jessica went silent.

What would have ordinarily been difficult with so many humans around, slight of hand tricks to make it appear as though Edward and Jasper were eating went off without a hitch during dinner. Between the humans who hadn’t eaten all day and the merfolk who had enhanced metabolisms, subtle movements made the food disappear just quickly enough to not raise suspicion. The conversation stuck mostly to prom, but I took it a bit astray when an idea came to me.

“Who wants to bet on how soon after graduation Emmett and Rosalie’s wedding will be?” I asked after getting a nod of okay from Edward. “I say less than a month.”

“Oh, I’ll take that bet.” Jessica said. “It won’t be until July if even the slightest bit of planning goes into it.”

“Well, he does still have to propose first, so I’d say August or September.” Ben cut in, and Angela nodded.

“Same.” she said.

“Two weeks.” Bella chimed in, chuckling.

“I don’t claim to know Rosalie all that well, but I’d say October/November because I’d think she’d want to go all out as far as décor, food, music, and the dress.” Lauren said thoughtfully.

“Eighteen days.” Edward and Jasper chorused, snickering.

“Emmett’s a giant sap sometimes, honestly.” Jasper said.

“Their anniversary is eighteen days after graduation, and he’d definitely want to get married on that day.” Edward added as the waitress brought the check to the table.

Once the bill was paid, Angela pointed out that it made more sense for Ben to ride with her while Bella and I went with Edward and Jasper back to our house. As we were saying our parting words, I whispered something to my cousin.

“Don’t be afraid about what Embry will think of the dress. I know he’ll love it.” I told her, and Lauren blushed a light pink momentarily before thanking me and smiling smally.

Emmett and Rosalie were waiting for us when we got home. Emmett told the guys that he didn’t care if he’d just gone on a hunt that morning, they were going hunting so that they’d destress from mine and Bella’s incident. Once they’d gone, Rosalie went to the kitchen with Bella and me where two bowls of freshly scooped cookie-dough ice cream sat waiting.

“It’s time I told you guys my full history. You’re my sisters, and, especially after tonight, you deserve to know.” she told us. “I was born in Rochester, New York, in the summer of 1915, and I was told that I was born beautiful.”

“I can believe that.” Bella said as she coated her ice cream in chocolate sauce.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Rosalie said with a chuckled before continuing. “My father was a banker, my mother was somewhere between a housewife and a socialite, and my two younger brothers were rascals. I was aware that everyone I’d ever met had been jealous of me at some point, even my mother. When the stock market crashed, we were largely unaffected; it was like the Great Depression was just a rumor in our house, and I didn’t care that there were people struggling in my own city. I was so obsessed with the fact that I was Rosalie Lillian Hale, the most beautiful woman in Rochester, that I didn’t even notice how my mother’s spending habits were affecting my father’s work and economic status. We were on the path to poverty, but my mother had a plan. My father’s boss, Royce King I, was letting his son take over one of the banks he owned, the one my father managed. One day, my father ‘forgot’ his lunch at home; so, my mother had me put on my white organza and do my hair before taking it to him. Royce King II was in the bank when I got there, and he took an interest in me. My marriage to him was supposed to save the Hale family from destitution. I didn’t care, at the time, that it was all a ploy. Royce was kind to me, showering me with affection and attention at every chance he got, and I was in love with the idea of having a comfortable life. I wanted just a few simple things, far more than any of the material things I already had, and Royce could offer me that. I wanted a husband who kissed me when he came home, children to raise with him, and a nice house to raise my family in while I grew old. After a short, but appropriate courtship, he proposed. I accepted and planned the most lavish wedding I could. My best friend, Vera, was to be my maid of honor.” I knew something bad was coming based on the way my older sister was speaking, so I inched closer to her.

“Mom told me the bare minimum of what he did to you, Rose, when I told her about my childhood and had the vision of her past.” I confessed, and Rosalie smiled sadly at me before continuing on with her tale.

“Even if I’d remained human, Vera wouldn’t have stayed my maid of honor. She met a working-class man, and they fell in love. They married quickly after Vera discovered that she was pregnant, which was quite the scandal in 1934. Her son was born a few months before my wedding day, and I was named his godmother. He was adorable, with dark curls and the cutest dimples, and I knew then exactly how much I wanted a baby of my own. The night before the wedding, I’d gone to visit Vera and the baby. When her husband got home, I knew it was late. He offered to walk me to my house, and I should’ve listened to him and accepted, but I declined. He’d worked all day, and I didn’t want to keep him from the dinner Vera had prepared. I was about a block away from my house when I heard someone call my name. It was Royce and his groomsmen, and I could smell the alcohol before I’d gotten within five feet of the lamppost that they were under. One of Royce’s friends had just come up from Georgia for the wedding, and they’d gone out and gotten completely trashed. When I told Royce that I’d see him the next day at the altar, sober, he grabbed me. He ripped my clothes from my body, I can still feel those damned hat pins being torn from my scalp, and exposed me to his friends. They passed me around and left me for dead when they’d all finished. As they left, one of them told Royce he’d need a new bride.” Rosalie’s voice broke as she told us her story, and I did the first thing I could think of by moving around the island and gently hugging her.

“I wish you’d been able to make it home, Rosalie. No matter how vain and selfish you were, you didn’t deserve that. No one ever does.” I told her, resting my head against her icy shoulder and wrapping my arms around her middle.

“I know what a lot of women think after things like this; volunteering with the school counselor teaches you a thing or two. It doesn’t make you damaged, Rose, and none of what happened was your fault. I hope those bastards got what they deserved.” Bella added, hugging Rosalie from her other side.

“Oh, they did. Dad found me on his way home from work; he smelled the blood. He thought, because of Edward’s constant ranting about my thoughts, I might be a suitable mate for the asshole. Don’t get me wrong, I love my little brother, but he was a complete asshole to me in the beginning. The transformation hurt like Hell, literal fire-and-brimstone Hell. I felt like I was on fire, and I begged Dad to let me die. When I woke, he and Mom told me what I was. I was pissed, beyond that even. Dad told me I could leave and be a nomad if I wanted, but I wanted to know what made Edward tick. I’d been so jealous of him, and Mom and Dad, for their unnatural beauty for so long, and Edward had always been rude to me, so I just had to know. Mom and Dad prepped for our next move, as my family and the Kings had gone all out to search for me, so I decided to take my revenge. One by one, I found and killed each of my rapists. I saved Royce for last, also stole a wedding dress for the occasion due to my theatrical tendencies, and hunted him down. I found him in a vault-like room with a single guard outside the door. The guard was the only human I regretted killing back then.” Rosalie said, and we giggled.

“I don’t tend to advocate violence, but way to go, Rosalie!” Bella cheered, and Rose laughed lightly.

“Please tell me you didn’t stain the dress too horribly!” I said, and they both laughed at me instead.

“I didn’t spill a drop on the dress, actually. I’d gotten enough experience with the others to keep things clean, and I intended on returning the dress once I’d killed Royce. I shredded it instead after finding out that it belonged to Royce’s new fiancée. Things did get better after we moved. Tennessee had animals that tasted completely different from New York, especially the bears. I was on a bear hunt when I found Emmett being mauled to death. I jumped in to save him, and I touched his hand. I felt as though my hand was on fire, and I knew. He had curly dark hair and dimples, much like my godson, but it looked beyond handsome in conjunction with his muscular arms and massive height. I killed the bear, picked Emmett up before he’d bled out, and ran home with him. I begged Dad to change him, telling him about the fire feeling in my hand when I’d touched Emmett’s, and he changed him. The first thing I told Emmett after Dad explained what had happened was ‘I am so sorry.’ He struggled with leaving his mother and sisters behind, but we made sure they’d be taken care of before we left. We spent months getting to know one another before I was comfortable with him enough to trust him to not take advantage of me. He cares about me, even deeper than love, to the point of not pressuring me because of what I went through. I don’t dwell on my human life much anymore, but Emmett is always thoughtful and well attuned to my thoughts and moods. He knows when to keep his mouth shut and comfort me. He knows me.” Rosalie said, and I raised an eyebrow at her until she broke into giggles while holding up her left hand. “And we’re getting married again!”

“As awful as your past is, Rose, I’m glad it has a happy ending.” Bella said, and Rosalie smiled.

“It’s not the ending I’d initially planned, but it’s the best ending I could’ve hoped for from the time I woke up as this.” she said, nudging each of us with her shoulders. “At least I finally have sisters instead of being stuck in a house full of boys!”

We giggled some more, and Bella and I ate our ice cream, while discussing what all plans Rosalie had so far for the wedding. Rosalie was clear that she wanted something light and spring-like this time around, describing a few of hers and Emmett’s more elaborate weddings for examples of what she didn’t want. I stopped her before she got too far into her wants list and ran upstairs to grab a notebook from the rather large stockpile of them that I’d amassed. Once I was back downstairs, Rosalie had washed the ice cream dishes and pulled Bella over to the couch in the family room.

“Okay, so, I was thinking that something that you could d-” I cut myself off as a vision swept me over, and I smiled.

**I was standing in Rosalie and Emmett’s closet, trying not to cry happy tears as Bella finished Rosalie’s makeup. Her lips were colored a dusty rose, and her eyelids were painted a deep petal on the sides with a shimmering gold in the middle that led down to her glimmering golden irises. She had done her own hair, pulling it up into a half-updo similar how she’d worn it for Sweethearts, and her nails had been painted a delicate petal pink as well.**

**“ _Girls?_ ” Esme called moments before stepping into the room and smiling at the three of us.**

**“ _Bella and I haven’t done our makeup yet, so whatever you’re going to say should really be enough to make us get the crying out before we ruin our faces._ ” I said with a light laugh as Esme walked over to us with a square box in her hands.**

**“ _It doesn’t always hurt to follow wedding superstitions, and I’ve done some thinking. Rosalie’s gown is her something new; her shoes are her something blue; but she doesn’t have something old or borrowed. I would like to lend you this if you’ll have it._ ” she said as she opened the box to reveal a rose gold circlet decorated with diamond flowers with pearl centers.**

**“ _Mom, it’s beautiful! Of course, I’ll wear it. Where did this come from, and why have I never seen this before in seventy years?_ ” Rosalie asked in amazement.**

**“ _Your father and I got married in the 1920s, dove. Circlets like these were all the rage, and your father bought me this one to wear to the first charity gala that I ever attended. By the time you came along, they’d gone back out of style; so, I boxed it away but held onto it because it had been a gift from Carlisle that I could use as an example of a gift that’s not a private island._ ” Esme answered, and we all giggled at her last statement.**

**“ _I think that’s one area where Edward takes after him._ ” Bella said, though her smile betrayed her less-than-enthused tone.**

**“ _While that is more than likely true, you and I can spend time complaining about how our men have no concept of poor or the value of a dollar while Rosalie and Emmett are on their honeymoon, dear. Who knows, Jasper may end up joining us._ ” my mother teased, and I scoffed while trying to look offended.**

**“ _I have more sense in my spending than Edward or Dad ever have. If I overspent on Jasper’s birthday present this year, it’s because he’s spent too long as the only member of this family without a car of his own._ ” I said, but laughter followed my words as Bella quoted the exact figure that I’d spent on Jasper’s birthday present.**

**“ _Sex would’ve been more cost efficient, just saying._ ” Rosalie joked, and I waived her off with a smirk.**

**“ _I couldn’t get him the same thing he got me for my birthday!_ ” I joked in reply, and Esme chuckled.**

**“ _She’s right, regifting is very seldom a good idea._ ” my mother added, and we all laughed as she placed the circlet on Rosalie’s head.**

**The vision sped through the remainder of us getting ready, and suddenly I was walking down the aisle after Bella with white rose petals muffling the sound of my high heels on the raised wooden walkway. Bella was at the top of the platform at the end of the aisle and positioned in front of a set of white columns supporting the white flowered arch under which the officiant stood. I was a step behind and below Bella, and the Denalis followed behind me in a similar fashion. Across from us were Emmett and his groomsmen. Edward was his best man and standing in a mirrored position to Bella, and Jasper mirrored me. Garrett stood beside him and across from Kate; as we all turned to see Rosalie and Carlisle walking towards us, I noticed that Irina was sitting with Tanya, Elliot, Carmen, and Eleazar along the front row with Esme who was pretending to dab tears from her eyes as Canon in D began playing. The vision faded away as Rosalie and Carlisle reached the platform.**

“-ice, Alice?” I blinked as both Rose and Bella called my name.

“Sorry, I just saw your wedding.” I said to my older sister before turning to my younger sister with a smile. “You’re her maid of honor.”

“M-m-me?” Bella stuttered out in disbelief. “Why not Alice?”

“Bella, you’re both my sisters, and I love you equally. If anything, the choice being made is mostly on Emmett’s end because, though he’d never admit it aloud, Edward is the brother he’s the closest to and will likely be his best man. Jasper knows, and he doesn’t fault Emmett for thinking the way he does; the two of them had twenty years as siblings before Jasper joined us, and Edward was the one who helped Emmett reign in his control in the beginning. I was barely out of my newborn stage myself, so he needed someone with more experience to help him; Edward was there to do everything a big brother should do.” Rosalie told her. “If it makes any difference, not only would I love nothing more than for you to be my maid of honor, but I was already going to assume that you’d choose Alice to be yours.”

“If you do, I totally accept.” I added, grinning, and Bella smiled.

“Then my answers are yes and yes.” she said, and I went about detailing everything I’d seen in my vision of the ceremony while keeping Esme’s plan to myself so that Rosalie would remain surprised when it happened.

It was near midnight when Carlisle, Esme, and the boys all entered the house at the same time. What had been a pleasant mood for the six of us “kids” was shattered by the looks on our parents’ faces. Edward knew what was going on first and zipped over to Bella’s side as if that would somehow protect her. Jasper moved slightly slower as he sat down in the L-bend of the couch and pulled me close. Emmett sat down beside Rosalie and waited for someone to say something.

“Your mother and I were out hunting when I received a call from Chief Swan about a body. This morning, Waylon Forge set out in his boat like he always does, but this time he didn’t come back. He was found dead in his boat just before sundown, and though I classified his death as Unknown, it has to be the work of the nomads. They’re in Forks.” Carlisle said, and I shivered.

“We thought of calling the cousins to ask for help, but we felt it best to hold off until the meeting later.” Esme added.

“I’m going to take Bella home. Charlie was friends with Waylon for a long time, and he probably needs someone with him right now. I’ll bring her back for the meeting.” Edward said, and Bella agreed with him.

They left, and I made the excuse of needing to shower as I jogged up the stairs. I heard the door open while I was in the shower, and the weight of the footsteps accompanying the person who’d followed me into the room told me that it was Jasper. He waited patiently for me to shut off the water and open the shower door, passing me my favorite, fluffy yellow towel.

“Mom never got to finish her hunt, so she and Dad went out once you were up here. Em and Rose are at the other end of the property right now, so please let me take care of you, Darlin’.” he told me, and I didn’t have it in me to resist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: They're back! The nomads had to come back at some point, I know, but it might be another chapter or two before they meet the Cullens face-to-face. Up next, a supernatural council meeting of sorts. Until next time, sweets!


	11. The Nature of My Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Please allow me to introduce myself/I'm a man of wealth and taste/I've been around for a long, long year/Stole many a man's soul to waste..."  
> -"Sympathy for the Devil," The Rolling Stones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This is a backstory and dialogue heavy chapter, and I apologize now to anyone who was hoping for more action. Sadly, this is one of those times where everyone just needs to sit around the table and talk things out for a bit. Don't worry too much, though, because the action will be back next chapter! Enjoy, sweets!

There are things in life that you can just know without the aid of a preternatural gift or ability. I knew that Jasper loved me not from the way he would use his own ability to show me his emotions but from the way he pointedly made space specifically for me in every aspect of his life. I knew by the way he never once tried shutting me out or ignoring me. I knew by the way I knew him. That being said, this meant that I knew when something troubled him as well.

The morning of the meeting we’d arranged with the merpeople, the Quileutes, the Denalis, and the witches, Jasper wasn’t in bed with me when I woke. I dressed and went downstairs in search of him, concerned because of how rarely he allowed me to wake up alone in the first place. I found him outside on the back deck, and the expressions that the four present members of my family wore told me that something had happened. They watched me as I crossed the room towards the door, but none of them actively tried stopping me. Edward, I knew, would have had he been home. The others all understood what he could not, and that was simply the fact that, no matter what Jasper thought he would do, I would never be hurt by him. With that in mind, I stepped out onto the deck and projected my concern towards Jasper while slipping my arms around his middle.

“I’ll be alright, Darlin’.” he assured me, moving just enough for me to put my back against the railing and face him.

“I think we should go for a walk before people start arriving.” I told him, and he nodded. “You need to be in the right headspace for this.”

He picked me up and put me on his back before leaping off the deck and running through the forest. About halfway to our spot, Jasper slowed and put me back on my feet. We walked along the river boundary, our linked hands swinging between us.

“We don’t have to talk about whatever happened, but you can’t let the negative energy consume you.” I said as we walked.

“I wanna talk about it with you, though. It affects you just as much as it does me.” Jasper replied.

“What happened?” I asked, and he let out a tired sigh.

“Peter called a couple of hours before you woke up, and he volunteered his and Charlotte’s help with the nomads. I told him that while we’ve got it pretty well handled at the moment, help would never be turned down when offered. Personally, I think they're both a little eager to finally meet you. The problem came when he said that there was someone with him and Charlotte that he wanted _me_ to meet.” he said.

“I’m listening.” I said, and he nodded before continuing.

“The two of them came across a homeless girl, about sixteen or seventeen, getting beaten in an alley in San Francisco about three weeks ago. She would’ve died, but Charlotte changed her. They’ve taken her in, seeing as how young she is and with it being their responsibility to teach her the Volturi’s law, and they wanted to bring her up here to meet me.” he explained, and I gave a slow nod before responding.

“And you told him not to come because having a newborn around Bella and me is a bad idea.” I replied.

“Exactly, and Peter wasn’t happy with that answer. We fought a bit after that, and I ended up tellin’ him about the twins. He accused me of tryin’ to replace him and Charlotte, and I told him that if he ever let himself think that little of me then I didn’t need his help right now and would talk to him once he’s had the time to cool down and get his head on straight.” Jasper told me, and I brought our joined hands up to press a kiss to his knuckles.

“He’ll come around, honey. I saw them in my vision of our stand against the Volturi, remember.” I said, and he nodded.

“I know, but he’s never gotten me this agitated before, even during his newborn months.” he noted, resignedly sighing.

“He’s never been worried that there’s something you care about as much as or more than Charlotte and himself, either.” I pointed out, smiling softly. “Once the two of you have both calmed down enough to talk this out like rational adults, you’ll explain to him that the twins don’t make the two of them any less important to you.”

“I’d be pretty stupid to bet against you, Darlin’.” Jasper told me with a smile as we reached the tent.

We didn’t stay long in the tent long, heading back to the house after a few minutes to ensure that we didn’t arrive late. In our absence, the rest of the family had assembled sixteen chairs around three tables pushed together in case the merpeople didn’t want to sit in the pool. Mine and Rosalie’s laptops had been set up for the video calls with the Denalis and the Scotts, and Esme had prepared snacks for everyone who would eat them. Bella and Edward had beaten us back, my sister visible through the library windows blowing a raspberry at Emmett for some reason that neither Jasper nor I were privy to, and Carlisle was at the head of the table nearest the back door with a notepad in front of him.

“Writing out an agenda for the meeting, Dad?” I asked him as Jasper and I joined him at the table.

“Got it in one, Poppet.” he replied, smiling at me. “Can you see if there’s anything I’ve forgotten?”

“Sure.” I said before taking the notepad he offered and skimming it. “Introductions, a brief rundown of each species’ history, an overview of the immediate nomad problem, an exchanging of contact information, and parting pleasantries. It all looks good, but the only thing I could think to add is explaining what powers some of us have and advocating for training sessions against both regular vampires and newborns.”

“Newborns?” he asked, and I nodded.

“Alice has a point.” Edward cut in upon picking up on my thoughts. “When you have a record like Maria’s, you aren’t as likely to change your fighting style. When she comes for Alice, as well as for Jasper and the twins assuming she somehow finds out based on what Alice has already seen, she’ll likely seek to attack us with a newborn army.”

“They’re right, Dad, it’s exactly what she’d do. Aro does the same thing, only he uses the guard instead of newborns. What they lack in newborn strength, the guard more than makes up for with their gifts.” Jasper said, leaning in as he spoke. “Back during the Southern Vampire Wars, we always lost more than we saved. Maria never cared if a newborn died because they could be replaced the way you might replace an old dog with a new puppy.”

“I’ll add it to the list.” Carlisle said, writing my suggestion down just as every vampire’s ears twitched.

“Sam, Billy, and Jacob are here.” Edward announced.

“This’ll be the first time you get to meet your future son-in-law, isn’t it?” I joked, and he rolled his eyes.

“I’m choosing to withhold judgement on the kid until I know him better.” my brother said as the back door opened and the Quileute representatives were led towards us by Esme.

“I’ve made plenty of snacks, but just let me know if anything needs to be refilled.” she told them as Billy wheeled himself to the end of the farthest table while giving Carlisle an amiable smile.

“Thank you, Esme.” he said as Sam sat down on one side of him while Jacob sat on the other. “Carlisle, thank you for extending the invitation.”

“You’re quite welcome, Billy.” my father replied. “Once the kids came to Esme and me with this idea, we could hardly turn down such an opportunity. After all, what is the statistical likelihood that this many different parts of the supernatural world converge?”

Billy nodded in agreement, and I noticed Edward’s ears twitch again. The merpeople had arrived, and Rosalie had gone to meet them along with Esme while Emmett and Bella joined us outside. Emmett went about calling the cousins on Rosalie’s laptop while I called Gwen on mine. The adult merpeople sat at the table in their human forms, but Angela and Ben got into the pool. Their transformations were quick, each of them sprouting a long tail with intricate designs, but the older merfolk seemed surprised at the younger twos actions.

“What?” Ben asked his parents upon seeing their expressions, flexing his turquoise tail enough to splash Angela before continuing. “The guys have seen my tail before, and I’m not scared to be around them in my natural form.”

“I agree. Alice and Bella are the only ones here who are truly human, and they won’t be staying human for long, so it’s not a big deal for me.” Angela added, using her golden tail to splash back at her mate.

“On that note, why don’t we get started?” Carlisle spoke up, gaining everyone’s attention. “It’s nice to have everyone here, and I hope that we can have more of these meetings in the future. There are those in our world who would rather us remain separate, but I have found in all my years that the best ideas come from a gathering of those with differing opinions who can each bring something new to the table.”

“Wait until they hear how long your years have been, Dad.” Emmett joked, and Carlisle chuckled.

“This month, I will be three-hundred-and-sixty-five-years-old.” Carlisle said as he began our family history, detailing how he discovered that vampires can survive without hunting humans by drinking from animals instead as well as how each of the first four additions to the family came to be, starting with the day he first met Esme and ending with the day Rosalie brought a half-dead Emmett home and begged for Carlisle to change him.

“I am the first to admit that I was quite the troublemaker when I was a newborn. I’m a mountain boy by nature, and Edward thinks this means I’m like a hyperactive Mastiff puppy half the time.” Emmett teased our brother, and Edward rolled his eyes good naturedly.

“I won’t bother to deny it.” Edward countered, and Emmett grinned.

“Wouldn’t want you to, brother.” he said before continuing. “I hated havin’ to leave my Mama and sisters behind, but I made sure they were well-off before we moved up here the first time. I have slipped up before, accidentally killing a human, but I got a hold on my thirst fifty years ago and haven’t had any slip-ups since.”

Jasper tensed beside me, and I leaned into him while trying to project my emotions at him. I knew that he was blocking Edward, so the fact that Emmett had quit slipping up when Jasper joined the family went undetected by everyone who didn’t know how to read my mate. He squeezed my hand before taking a breath and starting in on his own story.

“As much as I’d like to say it wasn’t so, I didn’t have quite the same upbringing as my siblings here have had.” he said. “I was born in Houston, Texas in 1845, and I was brought up with the belief that the order of your loyalties should be God, family, Texas, the Union or Confederacy depending upon the point in time we were in, and the rest of the world came in last. Josiah Whitlock and I never truly saw eye to eye; I was too much like Mama to be the son he wanted. I joined the Texas Cavalry during the Civil War to get away from him, and I was enough of a smooth talker that I got in when I was still three weeks shy of seventeen. I didn’t care about what we were fightin’ for as much as I cared that I was getting’ out of there. As irony would have it, two years later I stopped to help three women walking along by themselves after the evacuation of Galveston, and I was turned by the trio’s leader less than an hour from my childhood home.”

I let out a hissing noise at this, and I noticed the way that the merpeople, Jacob, and Billy all flinched. A deep chuckle sounded from across the table, and I looked up to see Emmett smirking at me. He winked, and I had a brief vision of he and I having an arm-wrestling match once I had gone through the change.

“You’re on, and you will lose. Bella’s probably gonna beat you, too.” I told him, and Edward snickered.

“I have no doubt that you both will.” he added before Emmett could respond.

“What are we talking about exactly?” Bella asked, giggling.

“Emmett’s planning on getting his ass kicked by both of his sisters once you’re stronger than him.” Rosalie said, laughing as well.

“I was just thinking that Al’s gonna be a vicious little newborn, probably stronger than me for a while, and you’ll be the same.” Emmett said, looking between the two of us. “My little sisters are gonna be fierce fighters, and I have no doubts about this.”  
“Perhaps we should get back to Jasper’s story so that we might explain to those who are unaware as to why Alice reacted the way she did?” Esme cut in, and the six of us nodded.

“Wars amongst vampire covens over territory were commonplace in the American South of the late 1800s, and Maria was no exception to this. Most of her previous coven had been destroyed in a war, the lone survivors being herself and the two women with her, Nettie and Lucy, and I was their first recruit. My first fifty years of this life were spent either fighting other vampire armies, training the newborns Maria made, or killing them for her once they’d outlived their usefulness. When I did what she wanted, Maria made sure to reward me, if you will, and I was too young and naive to know her feelings any better despite my pathokinesis. I thought she loved me, but I was too young to understand the different facets, types even, of love to see the truth. By the time I could understand, I had become her second-in-command and was allowed to sire newborns on my own. I sired two that were different from the rest, Peter and Charlotte, and they were different because they fell in love in a way far deeper than I knew was possible at the time. Separated by about ten years, Maria realized that I was inordinately attached to the both of them as they each got closer to their year marks, the end of a vampire's newborn year, and she ordered me to kill them once they were no longer useful. I couldn't kill Peter when he'd reached his year mark, so I justified his staying alive by pointing out to Maria that he was the only fighter anywhere near as competent as myself; when it was Charlotte, I couldn't take her from Peter like that. When Maria realized that I cared as much as I did for both of them, she ordered that I dispose of them both after training was done for the day; I couldn’t do it, though, so I helped them escape. Peter knew that I knew how he felt about Charlotte, and he knew that I wouldn't give chase if they ran; I let them go, and they were sadly stupid enough to come back for me. They came back five years later and asked me to go with them; once I decided to leave Maria, I never once looked back.” Jasper continued his story, and I noticed the ghost of a grimace that crossed his face as he mentioned Peter.

“Well, at least not any further than necessary for explaining yourself to Dad when he found you.” Emmett said teasingly, and Jasper chuckled before responding by finishing his story.

“That’s true. I couldn’t stay with Peter and Charlotte for very long; after the first few years, they both started feeling like they were under constant supervision from their father and started resenting my presence. We ended up butting heads frequently at that point, Peter more so than Charlotte, and we agreed that it’d be best if I went off on my own for a while with a plan to meet back up at a set time and place. That was in 1943, much of which was spent hiding out to avoid people as much as possible due to their lack of people skills and my gift, and I didn’t see them again until 1960 in California when we’d agreed to meet. During my time alone, I ended up being severely depressed. My gift is also a curse in that I can feel what my prey is feeling as I kill, and I didn’t like what I was feeling. Animal emotions are much less complex and therefore easier to deal with, so I was immediately intrigued when a golden-eyed vampire a century older than me follows me into an alley in Pittsburg to tell me that I didn’t have to kill humans to survive. His emotions were the most genuine I’d ever felt to that point, and he saved my life by offering me a place in his family. Josiah Whitlock might’ve been my father by birth, but Carlisle Cullen has always been my Dad.” he said, inclining his head towards Carlisle.

“Sometimes, Alice, the two of you are so alike that it’s creepy.” Edward said with a snort, and I giggled before launching into my story.

“Edward’s referring to the fact that, like Jasper, my biological father and I have no love lost between us because there was no love there to start. I’m Mary-Alice Hope Cullen, and I came into my gift, my psychic visions, when I was eight-years-old; my parents had two different responses. Richard Brandon panicked because he thought I’d discover his mistress; Melissa Brandon, my birth mother, taught me what she knew about my gift and how it ran in her family. A year later, I had a baby sister, Cynthia-Leigh, but I didn’t have Mama; a week before he did it, I had a vision of him killing her and couldn’t do anything to stop it. As soon as her death had been declared an accidental drowning, Richard boxed up Mama’s things and married his mistress. As it turned out, his mistress was a Mexican vampire named Maria whose main goal was to reclaim the territory she’d lost in the last of the Southern Vampire Wars.” I said, and I heard the reactions around the table as people put two and two together.

“Your stepmother sired Jasper?” Sam asked, surprised.

“If you wanna be blunt about it, my stepmother sired, deflowered, and mentally destroyed Jasper.” I replied. “She has no idea we’re together now.”

“She will at some point, from what Alice has seen, but that’s for a later discussion.” Jasper added.

“Anyway, a little over a year ago, I had a vision of Cynthia being in danger because of Richard and brought her to Forks where she would be safe with our aunt and uncle. Meeting Jasper while trying to figure out how to get from New Orleans to Forks was unexpected, in so far as I didn’t know I’d meet him that day, but I knew that my life was guiding me to him the way it had always done. For as long as I can remember, I’ve had visions of Jasper, and of the life he and I will have together, so I never even thought to be afraid of him. The only thing I ever feared about my new life was not being accepted by my new family; my siblings took some convincing, but what else can a girl do?” I said, smiling over at Rosalie as I said the last part.

“Maria found our family once, while we were living in Calgary in the late 1960s, and after the havoc she caused when Jasper refused to go with her then, I became extremely protective of my family, my brothers in particular.” Rosalie explained. “It took me about a month to accept Alice, and I accepted Bella as soon as Alice told me about her.”

“And I couldn’t find better sisters if I tried.” Bella broke in, smiling as she began her story. “My name is Isabella Marie Swan, and I am the only one in this family who was actually born here. My parents, Charlie Swan and Renee Higginbotham, never should have been married. Renee has always been flighty and hairbrained, never really thinking things through before she commits to them no matter how big a decision she’s making. Charlie is…the exact opposite, and I am a lot more like him than I’m like her. For us, no decision can be made without thinking of the consequences. When they were teenagers, Renee dated guys who were artsy, free-spirited, and athletic while Charlie barely dated at all. His only really serious relationship was with Sue Uley, now Clearwater, and, at least the way we kids have always understood it, the Tribal Council wouldn’t approve it when they wanted to get married right after Sue turned eighteen. They broke up when Charlie refused to be the reason Sue walked away from her people, and she went on to nursing school while he became a cop. Sue had married Harry Clearwater not long after she and Charlie broke up, and Leah was born three months before Charlie met Renee on First Beach while visiting with Billy, who I am sure can correct anything that I just got wrong, and I was born fifteen months later.” Bella said, smiling down the table and Billy, who chuckled and nodded, before continuing. “I was four months old when Renee decided that she couldn’t handle the gloomy, rainy skies of Forks for another second. While Charlie was at work, she packed me and all our things into her car and started driving back to California where my Grandma Marie lived. We stayed with her until Renee had her teaching license, and then we moved to Riverside, California, not that far from Grandma’s house, until I was six and Grandma died. After that, we moved to Phoenix, Arizona where, last year, Renee met a minor league baseball player named Phil Dwyer who was really one of the only guys she ever dated after I was born. She’d put her dating life on the back burner out of fear of hurting me by not having a single, steady male presence given her tendency to go from guy to guy before she’d married Charlie, so I started encouraging her to date once I was in middle school. Phil’s honestly a good guy, and I had zero qualms with coming here, coming _home_ to live with Charlie once I heard they wanted to go to Jacksonville, Florida for Phil’s baseball career. I admit to resenting Forks when I was a kid, but I began to figure out how much of that was my mother and grandmother’s words versus my own feelings when I was about nine years old. I was here, spending my court-ordered month of the summer with Charlie like I always did, and he took me to Billy’s with him. Rachel and Rebecca were bullying Jake, as usual, so Leah and I helped him prank them while Seth watched and laughed. Leah agreed with me, and Seth agreed even though he didn’t really understand it, that her mother and my father should’ve been together, and we said that she and I had a closer relationship than either of us had with the twins because we were supposed to be sisters just like they were, and it made sense to us that sisters would be closer than friends. I have no idea if Leah remembers this now, and I know that she’s still going through a lot after Sam imprinted on Emily, but I think she’d be better off if she did.”

“Well, that about sums up the nuclear family of us Cullens, so who wants to go next?” Carlisle offered, and an excited voice sounded from Rosalie’s laptop.

“ _Pick me, pick me!_ ” Garrett exclaimed, and everyone’s focus shifted to the laptop screen. “ _So, my name is Garrett Fitzpatrick Adams, no relation to Sam or John, and I was born in the 1758 just outside of Boston. Like almost every other male in my time, I was a Patriot and joined in fighting against the British as soon as I was considered old enough to do so. During the Siege of Yorktown, I was hit; while my fellow soldiers continued to fight, I lay on the ground not knowing that I was about to be in even more pain than I could’ve imagined. In those days, vampires would use battles as cover for feeding. There was so much bloodshed that they could slip in, feed, and slip out without humans being any the wiser. One such opportunistic vampire bit my neck with the intention of draining me dry, but he didn’t get a chance to finish the job. Carlisle found me on the battle field, posing as a British field medic, and he recognized what was happening. He carried me to safety and seclusion so I wouldn’t be an immediate danger to others when I woke, and he explained what I had become once the change had run its course. While I didn’t abide by his animal blood diet originally, that changed when I met Kate and my new family last Halloween at Alice and Rosalie’s party. It turns out that there is actually very little I wouldn’t do for my family, my mate and child in particular._ ”

“ _You are such a sap sometimes, but I love you._ ” Kate said, pecking Garrett on the lips before deferring to Tanya.

“ _Maybe one day soon, you’ll make an honest woman out of my sister._ ” she teased Garrett before beginning the history of the Denali coven. “ _My name is Tatiana Aleksandrovna Denali, though most just call me Tanya, and I am the leader of the Denali coven of vampires. We consider ourselves cousins of the Olympic Coven, also known as the Cullen family due to our close emotional bonds as well as our shared diet. Though our reasons for following this diet are not identical to those of our cousins, we agree that vampires are not necessarily inherently better than humans or any other species. Our coven is actually several hundred years older than our cousins, and it was initially founded by Sasha, my biological great-aunt who became more like a mother to me once she changed me. Mother only knew how to feed on humans, so that is what she and I did; we attacked the carriage of some wealthy party, seeking money and material goods as well as blood, when we found my first sister, Katrina. Mother turned her due to her fighting skills as well as her physical resemblance to me. Some years later, Mother found a third girl who looked like Kate and me, and she changed Irina as well. Our family was a happy one, or at least we thought so at the time, until Mother decided to turn a four-year-old boy. She had created each of us out of her intense desire to be a mother, but three grown girls could only need her for so long before we became capable of fending for ourselves. Our brother, Vasili, couldn’t control his bloodlust in the slightest due to his age, his development frozen as a toddler, and the mass casualties of the village we were living in caught the attention of the Volturi and forced their hand. Mother and Vasili were both killed, her for violating one of the supreme vampire laws by creating Vasili, and him for being too much of a danger to humans as well as vampires. Since we had not known until that day that our brother even existed, Aro spared us._ ”

“ _I suspect you’ll have as much of a dislike for Aro and the rest of the Volturi by the time this is all over as most of us do._ ” Eleazar said as he began speaking. “ _I spent a number of years as a member of the Volturi guard, a group of vampires with additional gifts collected by Aro for the sole purpose of amassing more power than anyone else, due to my ability to sense others’ abilities even before they were changed. By the time I met Carmen, a taste of my Spanish homeland that arrived one day in Italy, I asked Aro to allow she and I to leave. By this time, the guard had amassed such power that he saw no further use for my gift in the grand scheme and agreed. I knew of Aro’s old friend,_ _Stregone_ _Benefico, and told Carmen that we should try to find him. We found the Denali sisters first, however, and they welcomed us into their family with open arms. We eventually did find Aro’s old friend, and Carlisle has proven to be a good friend to us as well._ ”

Carlisle smiled amusedly as he gave Eleazar a nod, showing off the mischievous side that he often hid under the pretense of needing to appear as the level-headed leader of our family, which he still was regardless. Esme and Carmen shared near identical looks of exasperated humor aimed at their husbands, and even Irina looked somewhat more cheerful. Kate took the lull in speaking to explain the sleeping teenage human between Garrett and herself.

“ _A little over a year ago, I found Elliot while I was out hunting. It was February in Alaska, and I didn’t understand what a human child was doing on his own along a deserted stretch of road outside of Anchorage; once I had him back at Denali Lodge, no longer near hypothermic, he told me his story. His human parents disowned him because he happens to like boys instead of girls, and that’s their loss. Because I didn’t abandon him, brining him home with me instead, Elliot and I bonded enough that I adopted him. Now that Garrett is with us, he’s got two parents that love and accept him for who he is unconditionally._ ” Kate said softly as she stroked her son’s hair while he dozed between his parents with his head on Garrett’s shoulder. “ _He’s usually a talkative kid, but I’ve come to discover that teenage boys who stay up until two in the morning playing video games don’t function very well when you wake them up at seven._ ”

Billy chuckled from his end of the table as he fixed Jacob with a knowing look, and his son flushed in embarrassment. Sam clapped Jacob on the shoulder before nodding over to where the Cheneys were giving Ben a similar look. Sometimes, boys will be boys.

“That’s something that I completely understand, Kate.” Billy said. “For those of you who don’t know me, my name is William Ephraim Black, Jr., but most people just call me Billy; as Bella said, I’ve been best friends with Charlie Swan for most of my life. His aunt, Molly Swan, is the mother of our late friend Quil Ateara IV, and Charlie used to visit her all the time when we were kids. Even though his aunt was part of our tribe through her marriage to Old Quil, the Elders were still against letting Charlie know too much about us, about our legends. The Elders could never hide it from me, however, because my earliest memory is of me sitting in my father’s lap on our front porch and seeing my grandfather and his two best friends, Quil Ateara II and Levi Uley, turning into giant wolves to go on one last run through the woods before they quit phasing for however long their lives would last after that. When I was growing up, I prayed every night for a vampire to wander into our territory so I’d phase; I wanted to protect my tribe the same way my grandfather had because he’d always been my hero. I was about twenty when I realized that it would never happen for me. I never worried for my daughters’ future when they were born, but I understood the worry my father and grandfather had always had the first time I held my son. Jacob, well, he’s going to be everything I wasn’t able to be, but that comes at a price. As good of people as the Cullens are, not all vampires are like them. There are some at this very moment who are lingering about the area who are a threat to us all, but I expect this to be the next matter of business Carlisle wishes to discuss after the introductions. Sam, here, is the great-grandson of Levi Uley, and he’s always been something of a second son or nephew to me. He was the first of his generation to phase. He has two packmates at the moment, and the younger boys are getting closer to the change every day. The more vampires that come to the area, even just to visit with family, the quicker it occurs.”

“I suppose we should go ahead and get through this, right?” Ben’s father asked, and his two female companions nodded. “In that case, I’m David Lucas Cheney, and I am a merman.”

“You don’t have to make it sound like an AA meeting, Dave.” said Angela’s mother. “I’m Tara Weber, and this is Dave’s wife Linda; my daughter, Angela, and their son, Ben, are in the pool behind us.”

“The three of us were born into a pod, a group of merfolk, in the Sea of Okhotsk between Russia and Japan. While not as old as many of the vampires currently present, the three of us were alive and past the infant stage when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor; our pod made a habit of migrating to warmer waters during the winter months, and we were there when the ships were hit. Tara’s mother was able to get the three of us to safety, but we ended up separated from the rest of our pod. We had no idea how to find them, if they survived, or where they would’ve gone if they indeed had. We split into two groups, the first of which was Tara’s mother and me as we happened to be the two fastest at the time. She and I swam back to the Sea of Okhotsk to see if the pod had returned there after the blast, but we didn’t find them. Tara and Dave swam towards the mainland of the United States to see if the pod had come this way. Nothing was found by them either, and Tara’s mother made the decision that we were going to find a territory to settle into until we either found our pod or could start a pod of our own.” Linda, Ben’s mother, said. “It took years for us to agree on where to live to the point that our aging had begun to slow due to how often we were on land just to see if we liked an area. We ended up settling on Whidbey Island, and Tara’s mom still lives there.”

“My mom made contact with a documents man in Seattle recommended to her by a pod we’d met in the San Francisco Bay area, and he helped us get human identities as well as a cover story since Linda, Dave, and I were all still physically young enough to pass for preteens. My mother became Coral Richards, and I became Tara Richards.” Angela’s mother continued.

“The cover story was that David Cheney was the son of Coral’s second husband from his first marriage, and she had become his guardian after his father’s death, and I, Linda Jordan, was the daughter of Coral’s best friend who had also died and left me in her custody. It wasn’t much, but people didn’t pry too much back then.” Linda said.

“I met my husband during a trip the three of us took to First Beach; we had planned on just staying in the water and watching the humans, but Noah caught sight of me before I could dive under the water once we’d gotten as close to the shore as we were willing. Before that day, I’d always laughed off the story of the Little Mermaid as an unlikely fantasy in which a human is so entirely accepting of our kind. But Noah was entirely accepting, saying that he wouldn’t have seen me in the water if God hadn’t intended for it to happen. After he and I married, my mother insisted that Dave and Linda follow us here, to Forks, to preserve and grow the pod. We thought she was a little crazy at first, but then Linda and I got pregnant within weeks of each other.” Tara finished.

“Wouldn’t it be hard to live somewhere where it rains as much as it does here?” Jacob asked, confused.

“Actually, we only transform in salt water. Freshwater bodies, like lakes, or regular rainfall aren’t enough to cause a tail.” Angela voiced from the pool as she heaved herself up onto the edge with just her tail remaining in the water.

“And your diet?” Sam asked, curious.

“We can eat human food, but we tend to eat things that have higher concentrations of Vitamin D than those without because of our bodies; we’re designed to retain Vitamin D because of how little of it exists on the ocean floor. However, we do also have the ability to drink blood like vampires do; though, when we do this, we tend to drink the blood of other sea creatures.” Ben explained while positioning himself beside his mate.

“Other pods, like the Gulf of Mexico pod, prefer human blood and make their meals easily accessible by capsizing boats and stealing away with the passengers whenever the need for blood arises.” Dave said, and I looked over at Bella to see her looking over towards my laptop where I was sure that Maddie was failing at hiding a grin. “Sometimes they compel deep-sea divers to follow them as well.”

“Compel them? What does that mean?” Jacob asked.

“Angela, would you care to demonstrate what I mean?” Dave asked, and we all turned to see Angela smile softly before beginning to sing.

“Upon one summer's morning/I carefully did stray/Down by the walls of wapping/Where I met a sailor gay/Conversing with a young lass/Who seemed to be in pain/Saying, William, when you go/I fear you'll never return again/My heart is pierced by Cupid/I disdain all glittering gold/There is nothing can console me/But my jolly sailor bold…” as she sang, her eyes on Jacob, he became seemingly entranced but remained otherwise still.

“Huh, usually that’s enough to move a man from where he stands into a mermaid’s arms.” Linda noted.

“Jacob isn’t an ordinary man, though.” I said, drawing everyone’s attention. “He’s genetically a shapeshifter even if he hasn’t phased for the first time yet. Plus, with the parents of his imprint being this close, you’re probably lucky it worked what little it did.”

“ _You’re not wrong, sugar._ ” Gwen called, starting the witches’ turn to tell their tale.

“I’d never bet against her.” Bella said with a smile, and Gwen chuckled.

“ _I couldn’t agree more, dear._ ” she said before refocusing on the group at large. “ _My name is Gwendolyn Johnson Scott, and I am the leader of the Scott Coven of witches. Currently, there are nine of us in the coven, but our youngest has only just come into her powers. Witches are more than just spellcasters, though that is a skill worth more than most others. All throughout the world, there are places known as Vaults of Antiquity that serve as supernatural lore libraries more or less; each one is kept by a witch or a coven of witches who are responsible for keeping the information on each subject present in the vault as up to date as they can manage. Given that I live in New Orleans, one of the most trafficked cities by supernatural beings in the world, I thankfully have my two eldest grandchildren to help me. Caleb is trained in document preservation, and Madeline has just received an early admittance to Loyola University New Orleans as pre-med._ ”

“ _It sounds impressive when Grammy says it like that, but witches have eidetic memories as part of us being responsible for all the preternatural record-keeping we do. I skipped a couple grades after my powers came in, but so did Caleb._ ” Maddie countered, but Gwen shushed her.

“ _Now, I suspect I know the reason behind this meeting, Carlisle, Esme, so tell me if I’m right. The nomads are back._ ” Gwen said, and the merpeople looked over at us with curiosity and fear in their eyes while the shapeshifter contingent looked worried.

“What nomads?” Dave asked, and Carlisle began to explain.

“When Alice left Mississippi last year, Maria wasn’t exactly pleased. While she didn’t care about what happened to Cynthia, she wanted Alice to help her rebuild her army for another war. With Alice’s gift, it would be possible for Maria to know the outcomes of battles before they happened, and Maria is willing to do whatever she needs to do in order to get Alice back. Her first move towards this goal was in hiring three nomads to track Alice down and take her back to Maria as well as reporting on any vampires with permanent territories that would stand in her way. One of these nomads was sent ahead for scouting purposes, and he killed Michael Mallory before being chased away from Forks by the Pack when he tried crossing into their territory. He regrouped with his coven in New Orleans near enough to Gwen for her to overhear their mentions of Alice; she placed a memory charm on the coven, but it was only temporary and ran out within the last few months. They have returned to the area, and we know that this coven is behind the deaths of the Gresham Mill guard and Waylon Forge.” my father said, and everyone was quiet.

“After the guard at the mill was killed, we started thinking up ways we could lure the nomads into a trap to take them out before they could do too much damage and attract the attention of the Volturi, as that would be bad for all of us, but we’ve got very little at the moment.” Esme added.

“Would this be the appropriate time to ask what’s the big deal about these Volturi people?” Jacob asked, and everyone in the vampire contingent chuckled, some darker than others.

“There are very few vampires alive today who remember a time before the Volturi came to power; they originated as a sextet in Greece before making the move to Italy near the beginning of the first century A.D. and, once they had established their base in Volterra, Italy, launching a century-long war against the Romanian coven who, at the time, ruled not only our world but the human world as well. Their influence only pertained to Europe at the time, with the Egyptian coven ruling Africa and the Japanese coven ruling Asia while the early history of the Americas and Australia is mostly unknown even now, but they began to grow rather sedentary in their lifestyle as time went on because the need to hunt was diminished by a never-ending supply of blood from either criminals being punished or citizens asking to be changed. Especially after acquiring the twins, Alec and Jane, it didn’t take Aro and his coven long to realize their opportunity to overthrow the Romanians and take the seat of power for themselves. By this time, Aro had done many a terrible thing to get the power that he had; he confided in me one night while we discussed art, literature, and philosophy that he’d killed his baby sister, Didyme, all to keep her from leaving the coven with her husband, Marcus, who has the ability to look over a gathering of people and know the exact relationship between each and every one of them. His sister, he told me, was capable of producing an aura of happiness that infected everyone around her, and he didn’t find it nearly as useful as he did Marcus’ gift; he regretted killing her, though, because he loved her so incredibly dearly and wouldn’t have done it if he’d met and changed Chelsea a little sooner. Aro only cares for a mere handful of people, and he would sooner cut off fingers than allow himself to feel as betrayed as he was when his sister, and I do mean his actual blood sister from his human life, asked to be allowed to leave the nest with her husband. Currently, the list of people Aro legitimately has any emotional attachment to are limited to myself, Alec, Jane, his wife Sulpicia, and, on a rather sad and ironic note, Marcus if only because his brother-in-law is his last remaining connection to his sister.” Carlisle began, and the adult merpeople fixed him with a near-identical expression of curiosity.

“Does his affection towards you not extend to your family?” Dave asked, and we all let out snorts of laughter.

“Sorry, we’re not meaning to be rude, it’s just that you’re completely right. Aro actually detests us.” Jasper explained, taking a moment to right all our composure. “He sees our loyalty to our family and our chosen diet as hindrances for his master plan.”

“Aro also hates me more than the others because, no matter how in love with Sulpicia he is, he’s always had a thing for my husband that has never quite been requited the way he’d hoped. I’ve always personally believed, from the first time I met the man, that Aro is polyamorous and in love with my husband as much as he’s in love with his wife.” Esme added, and Edward and Jasper both nodded while cringing.

“While he couldn’t really care less what happens ultimately to Mom, Emmett, and Rosalie, it’s different with the rest of us.” Edward spoke up, preparing to explain our gifts. “Like we’ve said about numerous other vampires so far, some of us awake to this life with additional powers that your average vampire doesn’t have. For others, they awake with an enhanced trait. As an example, Mom lost a baby shortly before being turned, and her greatest ambition in life was to be a mother; thus, as a vampire, she’s become something of a Super Mom.”

“Forget the ‘something of’ part, Ed, because she’s not just a Super Mom but _the_ Super Mom.” Emmett said, grinning over at our mother. “She’s got the most intense maternal instinct in existence, and her love knows no depths.”

“Perfectly matched with Super Mom is Dad’s extreme compassion. He always wants to help people, even if it’s someone he’d consider an enemy, and he never wants to hurt anyone…with one notable exception being anyone who hurts one of his kids or grandkids. He discovered our diet simply because he refused to harm humans to survive; you can throw insult upon insult at him, curse him out, and call him every name in the book, and I have, but he won’t get violent. Dad always makes an effort to try to talk issues out before a fight can happen. He’s Super Dad.” Rosalie said, and even I could see the apology in her eyes as she looked down the table towards our father.

“And neither one of them is any good at accepting sincere compliments from their children, so we’ll move on to my brother and sister who have just spoken so eloquently about our parents. Emmett is the second-strongest, mature vampire in existence; the only vampire stronger who isn’t a newborn is a member of the Volturi guard. Rosalie is, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman on the planet on a purely physical aspect. Now, while I am not personally attracted to her nor have I ever been, Jasper and I both can attest that there are few men who haven’t fallen under her charms at some point. There’s no special power behind either of these things, it’s just that Emmett’s strongest quality as a human was his physical strength while Rosalie’s was her physical beauty.” Edward cut in as our parents floundered for a bit while trying to find words after what Rose and Emmett had said.

“From what I know, Edward was always good at reading people as a human; thus, his abilities manifested themselves as telepathy upon his turning. At the moment, he is only capable of reading the minds of others, but he has been working on strengthening his gift to be able to send his own thoughts to someone else.” Carlisle finally found his voice again and explained what he could about my eldest brother. “He also is currently the fastest known vampire in existence.”

“Jasper is different from both of his brothers in that his gifts manifested before his turning and fall into both categories. For all that Edward is fast, that Emmett is strong, or that Rosalie is beautiful, Jasper is patient. There are only a few instances where he has acted without thinking, and one of those instances brought us Alice, so he usually has the most level head out of my three sons. He is also, as he mentioned earlier, pathokinetic. He feels the emotions of everyone around him and has the ability to manipulate him. You can all trust that he is not manipulating anyone’s emotions now because Alice has asked him to not to unless it’s an emergency; he very rarely doesn’t listen to Alice, like most of us, and that’s only because Alice sometimes sees things that make her reasonably paranoid.” Esme said, and I shrugged.

“I am my mother’s daughter; you come after my family, I will find a way to end you.” I admitted, and she smiled at me.

“That’s my girl.” she said teasingly, and I beamed with pride at being so similar to Esme.

“Alice’s family, through her birth mother, has had heavy amounts of psychic energy flowing through it for generations. Catherine Mallory has a gift of her own, though not nearly as detailed and clear as the visions Alice has, but Alice has significantly more control over her gift just by the mere fact that she can force a vision if she needs to do so. Her only true limitation is that her visions depend on the actions and decisions of those whose future she’s viewing. My arrival in Forks changed several times because, though Alice knew she would make first contact with me, our siblings and Edward changed their minds on how to deal with their new, human family members constantly during her first six months here.” Bella said, explaining my powers about as well as I could, and I giggled lightly before taking my turn to explain hers.

“Bella possess a powerful mental shield that, once she’s turned, can also be turned into a physical shield as well. From conversations Edward and I have had about our powers, she gets this from Charlie who is extremely hard for him to read sometimes, and Bella is the only person whose mind he can’t read at all. I have seen the physical shield in a vision, as well as the mental one, and it’s strong enough that the strongest known vampire can’t break through it.” I said, and my sister high-fived me across the table as the non-vampire contingent sat staring at our family in awe while the Denalis stifled their laughter.

“If you guys have this much power already, how much power are we talking about with the Volturi?” Sam asked, and I thought back to what I’d seen of our eventual confrontation with the governing coven.

“Putting it mildly, Aro is obsessed with unique powers that give him an edge and strengthen his defenses. He himself has the power of tactile telepathy; with the slightest touch of your hand in his, he can read every thought you’ve ever had. We have already discussed Marcus’ gift, and Caius is the lone one of the three vampire kings, if you will, with no extraordinary gift to speak of aside from his enhanced ruthlessness and ambition. Neither Sulpicia nor Caius’ wife Athenodora have special gifts other than their complete and total love and devotion to their husbands. The guard is an entirely different story; all of them have either an enhanced trait or special ability that Aro covets beyond nearly anything else. There are twenty-eight members of the guard, and the only one of them who is a high-ranking member with no gift but merely a trait is Felix, and he is the one mentioned when discussing Emmett’s strength.” Carlisle said, and Eleazar took over from there.

“ _I was once a member, as I have said, and my gift to sense the gifts of others, whether they have been turned or not, eventually became irrelevant to Aro because he had already amassed so much power within the guard by the time Carmen and I asked to leave. The way Aro rates guard members’ importance isn’t necessarily by the strength of their power in so much as it’s by the usefulness their power presents to Aro in his grand scheme._ ” he said, taking an unnecessary breath before explaining what powers of the guard Aro valued most. “ _Technically, Corin is one of the most valued members of the guard as far as Aro is concerned. Her gift is to induce an addictive state of contentment that leaves a person feeling unwell if they aren’t regularly exposed to it; her main assignment is to stay in the tower with Sulpicia and Athenodora so they don’t become discontent with rarely ever leaving the tower. After Corin, the most important to Aro on a strictly power-based scale of reasoning would have to be Chelsea because she’s the one keeping most of the guard from wanting to leave. While Corin keeps Chelsea content with life, Chelsea’s power of rapportokinesis keeps them all loyal to Aro, even Marcus._ ”

“She has her own limitations, however, which is the only true reason Aro doesn’t typically bring her anywhere outside of Volterra.” Carlisle said, smiling adoringly at Esme as he intertwined their fingers. “Deep emotional bonds, anything beyond just a friendship, can not be manipulated so easily. The bonds of mates, of Sire and Childe, and of blood family are too much for her to change. Aro discovered this the first time he tried to take Edward from me and failed.”

“Sire and Childe?” Billy asked, and my father nodded.

“For vampires, there exists a bond between you and the one who created you. This comes from the fact that it is their venom which flows through your tissues and keeps you alive. Venom is not just useful for killing prey or turning new vampires, but it’s also the only thing that can repair wounds we sustain or reattach limbs that have been otherwise displaced. Venom ties a Sire and Childe together for as long as at least one of them remains alive unless the Claiming ritual is done.” he answered. “Because of having Chelsea in the guard for as long as he has, Aro has never felt the need to fully explore the nature of the Sire/Childe bond beyond what is necessary and meaningful to him. He never knew that, had he used his power as her sire to its full ability, he could have easily forbid his sister from leaving or given her a strict set of rules to follow as to how often and when she and Marcus could go off on their own.”

“Aro didn’t know how far the full extent of such a bond could reach until he tried having Chelsea sway me to his side upon discovering my telepathy. He’d already known, with Eleazar and Carmen, that a mate bond couldn’t be broken, but he didn’t realize that Sire’s bond is just as firm. Carlisle didn’t say or think anything other than ‘Dear God, don’t let him take my son,’ and I told Aro that I was happy to remain with my father. I refused his offer to join the guard, and the only time I have technically left my family was with Carlisle’s blessing not long after he and Esme married. I needed time to determine what I wanted my life to be like, but it ultimately led me back to my mother and father because our bond is at its strongest and most content when we’re together.” Edward said, happily leaning into Esme’s touch as she squeezed his shoulder.

“You make it seem like this bond has a sentience all its own.” Tara said, and we all shrugged.

“I sorta does, at least to an extent.” Jasper noted. “Using myself as an example, the bond is only as strong as the connection between the Sire and Childe in question. Maria lost her control on me after I sired Peter and Charlotte; they are, for all intents and purposes, my children. When she ordered me to kill my children, I couldn’t bring myself to go through with it. I helped them escape, lied to protect them, and left with them when they came back because they realized…they realized that we’re family. I’m sorry, I’ve gotta go make a phone call.”

Jasper left the table after his apparent epiphany, and I looked over at Edward who met my eyes and gave a short nod. He sent me a vision of him telling me about Jasper’s thoughts once we were more or less alone. I knew what Jasper was going to do, and I knew I couldn’t let him go through this alone. I muttered a quick apology to everyone at the table before rushing into the house after my mate. This would end either very good or very bad. There was no in between.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Is Jasper about to do something potentially stupid? Undoubtedly. Will it work? You'll have to wait and see, sweets. Until next time!


	12. Wait for Me to Come Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "So you can keep me inside the pocket of your ripped jeans/Holding me closer 'til our eyes meet/You won't ever be alone, wait for me to come home/And if you hurt me/That's okay baby, only words bleed/Inside these pages you just hold me/And I won't ever let you go/Wait for me to come home..."  
> -"Photograph," by Ed Sheeran

Jasper knew I was approaching him once I found him sitting on our bed with his phone pressed to his ear. I sat down beside him, curled into his side, and began playing with his hair while he waited for Peter to answer. I knew my presence was welcomed by the way he wrapped his arm around my waist and began to play with the ring on my left hand. The rather simple ring, a platinum band with a single, round aquamarine stone bordered by two small, oval-shaped clusters of diamonds on each side, had been my actual birthday gift from Jasper; it was my pre-engagement ring, and I already knew that my actual engagement ring would be much more elaborate. That ring would be a showpiece that’s entire purpose would be to make it abundantly clear that I was taken, and Jasper’s wedding band would be no different. I had an entire section of my most recent sketchbook devoted to our wedding, and at least three pages had been filled with nothing but rings.

“Pete, sl-Pete, cal- Goddamnit, Peter, stop trying to apologize for five seconds so I can tell you that you don’t have to apologize at all!” I was brought out of my thoughts by Jasper’s rather uncharacteristic outburst, and I couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, you were pretty stupid earlier, but you’ve really only ever had Charlotte to think about in relation to this family and who gets my attention for how long now? Exactly my point…There’s nothing to forgive because I was never mad. Frustrated, hell yeah, but not mad. I still don’t think we’ll need much more help up here at the moment, what with the wolves and the cousins agreeing to help fight along with a few others offering their assistance as well. However, if you guys still want to visit, I do have a birthday in a couple weeks, and your aunt and uncle are getting married again in about two months…Yes, I know how Edward’s gonna be about it, but you two know better than to hunt in town…She’s your responsibility as your Childe, and I would like to think that I taught you well enough that you should be capable of parenting your somewhat unruly newborn. It’s not like they get much worse than you, Pete…Would you feel better about it if we made this as our current plan and I let you know if Alice sees anything that might suggest that it isn’t a good idea? In that case, I’ll call or text you later about your visit. Take care of your girls, Peter, and take care of yourself. Bye.”

“I told you he’d come around, honey.” I said as Jasper set his phone on his nightstand and pulled me into his lap.

“I’m sorry I walked out like I did, Darlin’, but I realized how Peter in particular would handle my response from this morning, and I couldn’t leave him with that much guilt and panic.” he told me, and I shrugged.

“You excused yourself politely, and I’m sure they all understand.” I replied, pecking him on the lips. “I’m glad things are better than they were with the two of you.”

“Things should keep getting better once they visit…at least I hope so.” he said, unable to stop himself from smiling.

Though I knew no great catastrophes would befall us if Peter, Charlotte, and their recent adoption came for a visit around Jasper’s birthday, we ended up arranging for them to visit for the wedding instead. Edward wanted their newborn to have at least a few months of training and control before being around his human, no matter what my visions showed me, because he was worried about the things I couldn’t foresee. I didn’t begrudge him that, and neither did Jasper, so we added them to the guest list for the wedding once Rosalie and Emmett gave it their approval. My sisters told me that night, shortly before Edward drove Bella home, that the female cousins had agreed to meet with us in two weeks for dress shopping.

After Edward and Bella had left, I asked my parents, Emmett, and Rosalie how the meeting had ended. The wolves would stand with us against our enemies, whether they be nomads, newborn armies, or even the Volturi themselves. The merfolk had agreed to be our allies as much as was possible for them to do given their water-based restrictions. The witches had agreed to align with us from the start, and Rosalie had made it a point to invite all of them to hers and Emmett’s wedding as a show of good faith; she already had a reputation on the rez as the member of our family most against their kind that she wanted to change that before Bree came to our family.

“I wish you could’ve seen Jacob’s face when he asked Bella why she hadn’t driven her truck here this morning and I told him that she’s afraid that I’ll either wrap it around a tree or completely rebuild the engine so that it’ll go faster if she leaves it alone too close to me for too long.” Rosalie said a little while later as we scrolled through pages of wedding cake pictures on her laptop.

“The engine thing, that one I can understand you doing, but even I know you wouldn’t do anything to harm the truck. It’s Bella, so she kinda needs something that sturdy until she’s changed. I’d like to think I know you well enough by now to say that you wouldn’t knowingly put Bella or me in harms way if there’s another option.” I responded, and she nodded.

“I wouldn’t, you’re right, but I still have trouble expressing my emotions sometimes. I can’t always help what people think about me, even my own family.” she admitted before showing me a ten-tiered cake decorated with an abundance of fondant roses in varying shades of pink. “What about this one?”

“Given that the majority of the guests are human if only because you have to show off a little bit and invite everyone, that ought to be big enough. The wolves and merfolk have enhanced metabolisms, too, so more is probably a good thing.” I said, doing my best to give her my full and honest opinion. “The roses would be nice and fit well with the overall aesthetic, but someone, my guess would be Jessica Stanley, would say something about it being about your ego since they’re roses.”

“Let her. Since when have I actually put any stock in what Jessica Stanley thinks of me?” Rosalie said, but I merely raised an eyebrow at her.

“Tell me you didn’t just lie to my face.” I said, and she looked down at the laptop screen unable to meet my eyes. “I’ve seen your expression when she calls you a slut when she thinks no one but her friends can hear her; I know how you get when she makes snide implications that you sleep with all of the boys and Dad, which would just be gross, so don’t you sit there and tell me that you don’t care about what she thinks of you, Rose.”

“How about this: I don’t have to see Jessica Stanley again after the wedding except for at Edward and Bella’s wedding, and maybe yours and Jasper’s wedding. I want every possible surface covered in roses, and if she thinks it’s all just an ego trip for me, let her; what she thinks of me won’t matter because she won’t be a factor in my life for much longer anyway, and she’s barely a factor now. Changing her mind won’t happen overnight, if at all, and I want roses at my wedding.” my sister reasoned, and I gave her a short nod and a grin.

“Now that’s more like it!” I cheered, giggling as my sister smiled smugly.

“I used to hate them, you know, roses. Mom wouldn’t even grow them the first three years I was a part of the family because Edward told her I’d probably cut the flowers off the stems when they bloomed.” she told me, chuckling. “Royce made it a habit to send me a dozen red roses and violets every day, and they became so abundant in my room that I began to smell like roses. For the first little while, it made me sick to my stomach to even catch the scent of a rose.”

“How’d you move past that?” I asked, curious and concerned.

“I did it the same way I moved past most of my human life’s traumas: Emmett helped me. He started out by giving me a single white rose; it symbolizes youth, purity, innocence, and eternal loyalty. We all bonded with Mom and Dad over something, and Emmett’s something with Mom is gardening and floristry; I think he actually made it his personal mission to get me to quit hating roses just so I would be able to quit hating myself, so he learned the meaning behind every color of rose he knew existed. Some of them required more explaining than others, like the black roses that symbolize change more than death despite what most think, but he worked his way up to the single pink rose he gave me the night he first proposed. He’s only ever given me red roses once, on our fiftieth anniversary, but that was the first time since 1935 that the mere sight of a red rose didn’t have any sense of anger, shame, or fear attached to it. For all I saved him from that damn bear, he’s saved me from something worse by saving me from myself.” she said, and I found myself completely in awe of my sister’s strength and my brother’s sensitivity.

“You two really do bring out the best in each other. Bree’s gonna be a lucky little girl to have you guys as parents.” I said, and Rosalie’s lips curved upward into a soft smile.

“I’d say the same goes for you and Jasper; he’s never been as happy or relaxed as he has in the last year since you came into all our lives, and you’ve come a long way from that scared little girl who was terrified at the mere notion of not being accepted by another family after having already been rejected by the one you were born into, more or less.” she replied. “Your babies are going to be just as lucky as mine or Bella’s.”

Over the next week, whenever we kids had gone to school for the day, we had discovered that the moms had started getting together to make a plan against the nomads. After talking it over with Billy, they had decided to include Aunt Catherine in the group as well given the personal nature of her interest in the ongoing events. So, it was simultaneously strange and not when Angela and I both received texts from our respective mothers asking us to meet at my house after school with Ben, Jasper, and my siblings. When we all arrived, the four moms were standing in the library with a whiteboard in front of them covered in varying shades of dry-erase marker.

“We think we have a plan, but we wanted to run it by you kids before we brought it up to the attention of the dads.” Aunt Catherine said excitedly as Sam and Jacob came downstairs from the kitchen to join us.

“Esme says that you Cullens have been planning for a baseball game in the near future when the next major storm front rolls in because the sound of thunder masks the crack of the baseball bats given how hard vampires swing.” Linda added, and the six of us in reference nodded.

“Jasper and I drove up to Seattle to pick up the new equipment last Saturday.” Edward confirmed.

“We were thinking that this would be the most opportune time to trap the nomads, and the easiest way to do this is to confuse them by having multiple scents layered on top of one another. We do all realize that Paul isn’t exactly completely okay with this whole alliance thing yet, but he’ll do what he’s told if you, Sam, are the one to tell him, right?” Tara asked, and Sam nodded.

“Yes, of course, but what do you mean by layering?” he asked, and my mother looked at us with a mischievous grin that I’d seen my brothers and mate make.

“How do you think Jared and Paul would feel about playing baseball with vampires?” she asked, and the energy shift in the room for once had little to do with Jasper.

Surprisingly enough, the dads had been just as on board with the plan as we kids. Carlisle agreed to call the cousins and ask if some of them would be willing to come in for the game; we had about a month before this could take place, so Tanya, Irina, Carmen, and Eleazar had volunteered to make the trip. Garrett had wanted to, we could all hear it in his voice, but he and Kate had to attend a parent-teacher conference night at Elliot’s school before taking him on a weekend trip that he’d been promised for his fifteenth birthday. The fact that Irina was willing to join made me happy to see that she hadn’t entirely given up on our family’s ability to remain safe.

The wolves weren’t initially so eager about more vampires coming to the area, but Jared and Paul both eased up after Aunt Catherine told them that all of the Denalis who would be coming in for the game had visited around Halloween the previous year and stuck to the animal-only diet that my family did. Jacob would begrudgingly be staying behind on the rez during the game despite his desire to help. Billy and Sam both assured him that he would be allowed to help much more once he’d phased while forcing him to acknowledge exactly how useless he would be against the nomads before phasing. He was being given a special assignment, however, of keeping an eye on Embry as the other boy was beginning to show signs of beginning the physical changes that preluded phasing.

As for the merfolk, this was their chance to show the other groups exactly how strong their superhuman strength actually was. They’d spoken about their powers and abilities during the part of the meeting that Jasper and I had missed, and strength was only the tip of the proverbial iceberg with what they had at their disposal. Rereading Bella’s notes made me both eager to see their powers in action and terrified them all the same. It was hard for me to imagine someone as sweet as Angela being as vicious as the mermaids in my sister’s notes; then again, it was just as hard for me to imaging either of my parents in a fight before seeing them train for the first time.

After school on Friday, Jasper and I drove up to Seattle to pick up Carlisle’s birthday present with Edward and Bella. I had initially volunteered the two of us to do this as part of the plan that my siblings and I had worked out with Esme to keep both Jasper and Carlisle from discovering what we were truly doing. While Carlisle’s birthday was on Monday, the following Friday was Jasper’s birthday. It made perfect sense for Jasper and I to be hours away from the house while Rosalie was taking care of ordering Jasper’s gift to the exact specifications she and I had planned; she and Emmett would be picking it up Thursday night while I, ahem, distracted Jasper in what was beginning to be my favorite method of distraction.

“I don’t think I need Edward’s gift to know what you were just thinkin’ about, Darlin’.” Jasper said with a light chuckle as he parked Esme’s Bentley in the Pacific Place parking garage.

“And what would that be?” I teased as we got out of the car, making it a point to ignore the silver Volvo parking beside us.

“Something enough to make my boyfriend almost wreck the car.” Bella said dryly as she and Edward fell into stride beside us as we walked towards the mall entrance.

“I don’t need mental images of my brother and sister, my _older brother_ and _baby sister_ , like that!” Edward contested, and I couldn’t help but giggle.

“You get enough of that from Rose and Emmett, don’t you?” I retorted, and Edward leveled his best glare at me which I, as usual, shrugged off as we walked straight by the parking pay counter thanks to Carlisle thinking ahead enough to pay the monthly parking fee given how often Rosalie and I went shopping.

“I hate my siblings.” Edward lamented, but Jasper merely snorted before responding.

“Sure, little brother.” he said, chuckling as we reached the elevator.

The shop we were going to was on the third level of the mall. It was a music shop that had been run by the same family for four generations, though the location had changed more than once over the years according to Edward who had, admittedly just because of the family, continued to buy piano parts from them every so often over the past four decades. He said that the current owner’s thoughts had confirmed it when he’d come in to place his order the week before that the name Cullen was synonymous with big spender when it came to their customers.

“I think Don was actually shocked when my order didn’t involve anything piano related.” Edward said as we stepped into the shop, and a man in his late twenties came over to us almost at once.

“There’s a first time for everything, right?” he said before shaking my brother’s hand and showing no signs of being bothered by the coldness of Edward’s skin.

“Most definitely.” Edward replied, grinning. “It’s great to see you again, Don.”

“You, too, Edward.” Don asked, light blue eyes traveling over to us. “Who do we have here?”

“You’ve heard about my siblings before, so allow me to introduce you to my brother, Jasper, and my new sister, Alice.” my brother said as he introduced us. “Though I still don’t quite understand how I deserve her, this is Bella, my girlfriend.”

“I’d agree with you if I didn’t know how self-loathing you can be.” Don said with a smirk before turning to the three of us. “Don Masen, pleased to meet you.”

“Masen?” I asked, looking at my brother incredulously.

“Garrett’s not the only one with tricks up his sleeve.” Edward said, his smirk nearly identical to Don’s. “It’s not like I left them without plausible deniability.”

“It’s true; no matter what I guess, he never gives me an answer. It was the same way with my dad, and his dad before him.” Don added.

“And on that note, is my order ready?” Edward asked, but Don sighed.

“It was a very complex restoration and paint job, and it still needs about an hour before it’s completely dry and ready for you to take home.” he told us, and I smiled while Edward grimaced.

“That’s alright; Bella and I need to pick up a few things elsewhere in the mall, and I’m sure the boys will be fine on their own for a bit. This piece is important to all of us, and we’d rather it be perfect than rushed.” I said, getting confused looks from everyone but Edward.

“Alice, you know how I feel about shopping.” Bella warned, but I waived her off.

“It’s just a couple of stores, and then we’ll go to the bookstore if we have time.” I said, and she shrugged.

“Eh, you got me out of that blood typing lab the other day, so I owe you one.” she relented, and I beamed before turning to Jasper.

“If I haven’t found you in an hour, meet me back here?” I asked him, and he nodded before pecking me on the lips.

“I’ll try to keep her from going out of control.” I heard Bella say to Edward.

“Part of me fears what she’ll be like in a few years.” Edward responded before kissing Bella lightly.

“We’ll see you boys soon!” I chirped before taking Bella’s arm and leading her out of the store and down the corridor.

Bella and I started out in a jewelry store just a few spaces down from Don’s shop. I knew the combined total value of the various pieces encased in the glass displays made my sister slightly uncomfortable, but she would get used to it at some point given our family’s lifestyle. Bella was surprised, her expression all to easy for me to read, when the jeweler greeted me by name and I told him that we were in the shop to look for something for her.

“Alice, what could I possibly need from a jewelry store?” she asked, and I sighed.

“You’re one of us, Bella, and you need something that says it. You’ll have more than one eventually, as we all do, but I felt that we could kill two metaphorical birds with one or two well-placed stones.” I told her with a reassuring smile.

“Two birds?” she asked, and I nodded.

“You are the only one of us without a ring, though I know you and Edward have only been a couple for a few weeks, but we know how this is going to go. You can wear it on your right hand since your ring fingers are surprisingly pretty much the same size, so it doesn’t have to be super awkward with Charlie or anyone at school.” I said as the jeweler brought out a small, silver ring on a black velvet tray. “Oh, Giovanni, it’s perfect!”

“I do try, Alice.” he replied, and I looked back at my sister to see her staring at the ring with an expression somewhere between shock and joy on her face.

“It’s the family crest.” she said, and I chuckled.

“We all have at least one item with the crest on it. Dad’s got his wedding ring, Mom has a bracelet, Rosalie has two different lockets, the boys all have a wrist cuff and a watch, and I have both this choker and a set of layered necklaces. You’re a part of this family, so you should have one too.” I said, picking the ring up to examine it.

Set on an intricate, platinum filigree band, the center of the ring was a piece of garnet with platinum lion set between an open hand of the same metal and an emerald trefoil. It perfectly matched the sketch I’d done, and I already knew that it was perfectly sized as well. I turned to Bella and offered it to her.

“C’mon, Bells, you know you want to.” I teased, and her lips quirked into a small smile as she took the ring from me and slipped it onto her right-hand ring finger.

“How’d you figure out my ring size anyway?” she asked, and I snorted.

“Dad paid for this a couple of days after the incident with Tyler’s van. We used your x-rays from your broken wrist.” I said, and we both laughed.

“On that note, ladies, will I be wrapping this ring, or will it be worn out of the store?” Giovanni asked, chuckling at the two of us.

“Oh, I’m not taking this off until after I see Edward’s reaction. I’m expecting it to be that adorable smile he gets when he’s happy about something, like the one he had when I told Jessica off at the dance.” Bella answered before I could say anything.

“I never get her to be this happy with a shopping trip, so let her do what she wants.” I said to Giovanni, and he chuckled and nodded while handing me a copy of the paperwork that went along with the ring.

“Give your parents my best, Alice.” he said, and I said that I would as Bella and I left the store and continued down the hall.

“Where to next?” she asked, still giddy about the ring.

“You see that wall of bright pink glitter at the end of the hallway?” I pointed in front of us, and she groaned. “I won’t make you get anything here, but I’m looking for something for Jasper’s birthday, and potentially something for after prom.”

“It’s not like I’d use any of it before next summer anyway.” Bella said with a snort, and we walked into Victoria’s Secret giggling.

“What about this one?” I asked Bella a while later, showing her a baby pink silk lingerie set.

“It’s cute, but I don’t about the color. I mean, aside from your Sweethearts dress, you tend to wear darker colors for important moments with Jasper because you said that he prefers you in those colors when you asked me to go through your closet with you the other day.” she replied, and I agreed.

“It is kinda light, and it almost makes me think of our dresses for Rose’s wedding.” I said, and she pointed to another set a little further down the shelf.

“What about that one?” she asked.

“Red’s typically Rose’s color, so I stay away from that as a rule.” I told her. “That one’s nice.”

“It looks almost exactly like the pink and white one, only this one’s blue with black lace.” she said. “Isn’t blue supposed to be my color?”

“You should totally get it! Even if you guys aren’t _intimate_ yet, it never hurts to tease when it’s a relationship like yours. Plus, with as long as Edward’s held out, he’ll manage another year.” I said, and she blushed before considering my words.

“If I get this, will anything change?” she asked, and I took a moment to check her future.

“Nope, it’ll be fine. Wait, no, there is one thing. We’re gonna go to another lingerie shop with Rose before prom, and we’re gonna run into Jessica who’s going to infer things about your relationship, but that would happen regardless. It’s Jessica.” I told her, and she chuckled.

“That sounds like Jess.” she replied. “Why are we going to another shop with Rosalie in a few weeks?”

“I know what I’m getting for Jasper’s birthday, but what I’ll need for prom isn’t here.” I said, scanning the shelves until I saw what I was trying to find. “Bingo.”

The garment that had caught my attention was a black teddy comprised mostly of sheer mesh and lace. Bella’s eyes bugged out when she saw it, and I had to fight back a laugh. For all Edward had previously complained about how much alike Jasper and I are, he and Bella were much the same.

“That’s…not a lot of coverage.” she remarked, and I snorted.

“Well, it’s not like he hasn’t seen everything before, Bella.” I said, making her blush again. “What’d you think we did after Sweethearts when we didn’t go back home with the four of you?”

“I actively choose to not to think about what you do or where you go when it’s just the two of you.” she told me.

“Fair enough.” I said, and then we made our way to the register with our items.

When we stepped outside of Victoria’s Secret, we didn’t take more than ten steps before another store caught both our eyes. Bella looked over at me at the same time I looked over at her, and we shared a quick nod before going into the store. As we browsed the racks, I couldn’t help but think that we had a little more than a year before Bella would be pregnant. I whispered this to her, and she smiled softly before whispering her response.

“I’ve been thinking of names, and I’ve told Edward my favorite. He hates it, but he’s being nice and telling me that he loves it despite what the look on his face says.” she told me.

“Well, what is it?” I asked. “Inquiring aunts would like to know.”

“Renesmee Carlie Cullen.” she said, and I felt the pull of a vision.

**I was standing with Rosalie inside hers and Emmett’s bathroom in front of what was normally Rosalie’s makeup table. Instead of makeup, however, that section of the counter was currently being occupied by a newborn girl in a purple onesie. She lay on a white blanket covered with purple flowers, and her tiny hands and feet were covered respectively in mittens and socks. My little niece was perfect.**

**“ _Jasper says that Bella’s sedated, and Edward’s finally calm. I’ll get this little one swaddled while you get Jacob, okay?_ ” Rosalie ordered softly, both of us smiling down at our niece.**

**“ _I’ll meet you downstairs in a minute._ ” I replied before leaving the room and making my way downstairs and out onto the back deck where Jacob was sitting with his head in his hands on the steps.**

**“ _Is it over, Al?_ ” he asked as I sat down beside him.**

**“ _Jake, it’s only just begun. Bella’s going through the change, but she’s doped up on so much morphine that she can’t feel the pain. Jasper’s currently keeping Edward calm, and Rose and I just finished bathing the baby. Are you ready?_ ” I replied, and he took a moment before nodding.**

**We walked back inside and met Rosalie in the family room. I helped Jacob, shaking with nervousness, sit down in the L-bend of the couch before nodding at my sister. With only the slightest hesitation, Rosalie stood from Carlisle’s armchair and took the three short steps needed to put herself and the baby directly in front of the wolf. With care, Rosalie settled the baby in his arms.**

**“ _If you ever hurt her, I will end you._ ” she told him, and Jacob nodded before looking down at the baby for the first time.**

**It only lasted a moment for Rosalie and myself, but it looked as though time had stretched on for an eternity when Jacob’s mouth quirked into a fond smile. Before he could say anything to the two of us, the baby raised her tiny, covered hand and pressed it to his cheek. She frowned, an odd look on a baby, as if something hadn’t gone the way she intended. Edward and Jasper entered the room behind us, and Edward said that she wanted the mitten off her hand. Being closest, I reached over and removed the offending garment so that the baby could place her palm against Jacob’s face once more. She cooed as he smiled down at her, and then he finally spoke.**

**“ _That’s right, sweetheart. I’ll always be your Jacob, and you’ll always be my Renesmee._ ” he said, and, glancing around at my family, not one of the people in the room disagreed with his statement, not even Edward.**

“-ice, what’d you see?” Bella asked as I returned to the present.

“I saw the moment Jake imprints on your daughter. He said her name, and I think you’ll be happy.” I told her, and she smiled. “I also sort of saw her gift.”

“She has a gift?” Bella asked excitedly, this being the first time she was finding out something about her daughter before Edward.

“She’s going to have some sort of tactile thought projection. Rosalie and I had just finished bathing her while Edward was tending to you, and Jasper to him, and we put those little mittens on her hands so she couldn’t scratch her face. After Jacob imprinted, she tried touching his face to use her gift but couldn’t because of the mitten. Edward came into the room and said that she wanted it off, so I removed it. She touched Jake’s face again, and he agreed with whatever she told him that he’s always gonna be her Jacob while she’ll always be his Renesmee.” I explained, and Bella was practically beaming.

“As soon as I learn how to lower my shield and Edward learns how to project his own thoughts back at others, I’m going to have to have him show me that.” she said as we continued browsing.

“Is there anything I can help you ladies with today?” one of the shop attendants asked, and my eyes flicker up to the large mirror just behind the woman to see a gawking Jessica Stanley near the shop’s door.

“No, but thank you. We’re just browsing for now, thinking about the future.” I said, subtly nudging Bella and motioning towards the mirror.

“A cousin of ours recently became a first-time mom, and everyone’s had a bit of baby fever ever since.” Bella added, and the shop attendant left us alone after that, allowing us to leave the store and act as though we didn’t see Jessica until she called our names.

“Alice, Bella!” she chirped annoyingly, and we turned around to greet her with what was hopefully convincing enthusiasm.

“Hey, Jess!” Bella greeted as the curly haired girl hugged her.

“What brings you to Seattle? Is there a sale I don’t know about or something?” I teased as she hugged me.

“You know about every sale, Alice!” Jessica said with a laugh. “I’m only here because I ordered this statement necklace to go with my prom dress and have to pick it up at the store. You?”

“We drove up with the boys to pick up Carlisle’s birthday present. Rosalie and Emmett are wedding planning, so it’s just the four of us today.” Bella told her.

“They’re looking through either books or music, maybe videogames, right now because Dad’s gift won’t be ready for another thirty minutes or so, and we told them to go look through the stores they like instead of dragging themselves into every store we like.” I added, and I watched as her eyes drifted down to our bags.

“Victoria’s Secret?” she asked, and Bella rolled her eyes.

“I was bullied into buying pajamas by a certain maniacal pixie, but her purchases haven’t been nearly so innocent.” my sister pointed out, and I shrugged.

“I set myself a goal, and I intend to meet it. This will be the best birthday Jasper’s had to date, no exception.” I said, and I saw Jessica’s eyes bulge out in surprise for only a moment before she managed to school her expression.

“I hope you’re being safe, else you’ll need the store you just left.” she teased, and I chuckled.

“We’re always very safe, Jess, and neither of us is eager to become a parent before graduating high school.” I told her.

“Still, I mean, even most contraceptive methods are only 90% effective, so there’s always a chance.” she said, but I brushed her off as politely as I could manage.

“Jess, I’m not pregnant, and I won’t be anytime soon.” I said, sticking with Bella’s story. “One of our cousins in Alaska just adopted a son, and Elliot is a popular topic as of late in our house.”

“Sometimes it’s hard to not think about if your future has kids in it and what you’d do then.” Bella added, and Jessica smiled at the pair of us, obviously going along with what we were saying.

“That _is_ true.” she said, giggling. “It’s not like I haven’t ever thought of someday being a mom with a little Mini-Me following me everywhere.”

“It’s all fun and games until you start thinking about your daughter being old enough to date one day and then remember what teenage boys are like most of the time.” Bella lamented, brushing her hair back with her right hand, and I felt that she did this purposefully so Jessica would see her ring.

“Is that what I think it is?” Jessica asked, and Bella hid what was at first a smirk behind a fake smile.

“It’s a commitment ring; it’s sort of like a promise ring and is supposed to symbolize that Edward and I are serious about our relationship.” she said, and her smile softened a bit.

“It’s also a symbol of you being a part of this family for better or for worse, so suck it up, sister. You’re stuck with me forever.” I teased, and Bella laughed.

“I’d rather have you for a sister than Jasper’s ex. You might be slightly evil when in your natural habitat of a shopping mall, but at least you’re not a manipulative bitch.” Bella pointed out, and I laughed along with her while Jessica stared in confusion.

“Jasper’s ex?” she asked, and we nodded.

“He and Rosalie lived with our parents off and on during childhood, and Jasper ended up spending a few years in Texas with his and Rosalie’s birth father. While there, he met the girl named Maria who led him to believe that she loved him just so he’d join her gang. Thankfully, though tragically, his and Rosalie’s birth parents died shortly after he realized that Maria was just using him. He moved in with Mom and Dad, along with Rosalie, not long after that in Alaska.” I said, trying to bury my deep seeded rage that welled up every time Maria entered my thoughts.

“Wow!” Jessica responded. “No wonder he was always so closed off when they first moved here. It’s a miracle he’s able to trust anyone after a heartbreak like that!”

“Perhaps, but he trusts me. How is something only he could explain, but he does.” I said, not giving her more than that to potentially attempt turning around on me later.

We parted ways with Jessica a few moments later and made our way down to the entry hallway we’d entered from to find our mates inside Barnes & Noble. To no one’s surprise, we found Edward browsing classic literature and Jasper sorting through several history books. Bella and I each stayed with our respective mate, and it didn’t take long for Jasper and me to walk over to the Starbucks inside the store. I saw the reflexive smirk appear on his face as I ordered my coffee, and I knew that Edward was rolling his eyes wherever among the stacks he and Bella were.

“Do I get to see?” Jasper asked as we sat down, head tilting towards my shopping bag.

“Not until your birthday, no.” I told him, and he pouted as I continued. “I have some other things that you can see later, however, that mysteriously showed up on my side of the closet earlier this week, likely at the hands of our blonde sister.”

“So, this is how she makes it up to me for me not being able to stand being in the same room as her and Emmett for the first ten years I was a part of this family.” he said with a playful grin.

“Well, Emmett’s more than made up for his half of that, hasn’t he?” I giggled out before taking a sip of my coffee.

“I’m glad Bella likes her ring. It’s definitely improved Edward’s mood.” Jasper said.

“Bella’s taking to being a Cullen faster than she realizes. We ran into Jessica Stanley upstairs, and Bella made no effort to hide the ring from her; she even stressed it to Jessica that the ring is meant to be a symbol of both her permanent place in Edward’s life as well as in our family.” I replied, and he chuckled.

“I’m sure she just _loved_ that.” he said dryly.

“Oh, not as much as she loved seeing Bella and me walking out of the maternity store, I’m sure.” I said, and he raised an eyebrow.

“Maternity store?” he asked teasingly.

“We both know that I’m having your children in roughly two years’ time, so where’s the harm in looking at clothes for the occasion? Besides, I ended up learning our younger niece’s name while in there.” I told him, and he smiled at my mention of the twins.

“We really should start thinking about names for our own babies, shouldn’t we?” he asked, his expression soft.

“We can start talking about that later tonight.” I replied, reverting to the playful and flirtatious nature of the start of the conversation as I spoke. “After all, I’ll have to wear through this amount of caffeine somehow.”

“I’m sure we’ll find some way to handle that, Darlin’.” Jasper said in much the same tone, golden eyes watching as I brought my coffee cup to my lips once more.

Hours later, near midnight, I let out a contented sigh as I lay in bed with Jasper in our tent. After having picked Carlisle’s birthday present up from Don, the four of us had split up for the drive home. Edward said he and Bella would stop in Port Angeles for dinner, but Jasper and I had gone straight home with the present to show Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett before hiding it in our closet. We’d waited until Edward had parked the Volvo in the garage and left for Bella’s on foot before we disappeared into the woods with a passing statement to the others about going for a walk. We did walk for a while, so it wasn’t a total lie.

“What are you thinkin’ about, Darlin’?” Jasper asked me as I traced the scars on his shoulder.

“I know when we should get married.” I said, glancing up long enough to see him smile.

“When?” he asked.

“March 9, 2007.” I said firmly.

“Why then?” he wondered.

“That day will mark three years to the day of the first time, whether it be with your powers or aloud, that you ever told me that you love me.” I said, thinking back to the first time I’d felt how much my mate loved me.

“Then that will be the day we get married.” Jasper agreed, chuckling softly before adding in one more statement. “In a way, it’s kinda perfect seeing as how the next day was when you first told me about our babies.”

“Our babies who still need names.” I reminded him, and he let out a hum of agreement.

“What did Edward and Bella decide on, exactly?” he asked. “It’s probably a name that means somethin’ to both of them, right?”

“Bella picked the name Renesmee Carlie, and Edward’s just going to have to deal with it.” I told him.

“She’s gonna be a hybrid baby, so a hybrid name suits her.” Jasper mused, and I agreed.

“Would something like that suit either of ours?” I replied, curious as to his thoughts on the matter.

“I don’t rightly know, but I think that would depend more so on who we’d chosen to name them after as well as how the names were worked together.” he said, and I began making different name combinations in my mind until one jumped out at me.

“Eloise Rosabella Ann Whitlock.” I said, looking over at Jasper whose expression shifted from surprise to delight.

“Matthew Alexander Anthony Whitlock.” he replied, and I beamed at him while nodding.

“Just two more years, and then we’ll have them.” I said softly.

“But until then, it’s just us.” Jasper replied before leaning in for a kiss that I giggled into happily.

Jasper and I made it home just before dawn, and I was asleep soon after now that the caffeine from earlier in the day was well out of my system. I woke hours later only when Jasper moved from beside me. He quietly said that Emmett and Edward were dragging him hunting, and I told him to enjoy himself. Once the three of them had gone, I let out a sigh and got up from the bed. The soreness I felt from the night before was mild still, but I didn’t want it potentially getting worse by ignoring it. So, I gathered together an outfit for the day and made my way into mine and Jasper’s bathroom. I would feel much better after a long soak in the tub; I expected that, but I didn’t expect to fall asleep. Nor did I expect what followed.

**The three nomads were standing in a forest clearing under a dreary, gray sky. The woman was looking between the two men with some concern on her face. The man with the lighter hair and skin was smelling the air as though he’d caught the scent of some interesting prey. The darker of the men was scanning the trees for any sign of movement. All three turned in the same direction, obviously having heard something in the distance, and jumped into the trees above before skipping across branches headed north. When they stopped, I could see what they were seeing. Several yards off, there stood another trio that I recognized. Jasper, Emmett, and Edward were horsing around as they moved west towards the house.**

**“ _Seriously, dude, you’ve had sex more times in the last month than I have, and I’m the one that’s actually married!_ ” Emmett teased, and Jasper smirked at him and chuckled.**

**“ _You and Rose had already been married for nearly two decades when I moved in, and I couldn’t be around you until almost another decade had passed because of how bad the two of you used to be. I think you should count this as an improvement and be glad that we both have enough sense to not let my powers infect us all._ ” Jasper replied. “ _Though I do wonder how bad off it’ll be once Edward’s got no reason to hold back with Bella._ ”**

**“ _I’m not comfortable with taking that risk until absolutely necessary, and you both know why. Though, if I let her go shopping with Alice again, the two of them might just find a way to kill me. Almost ninety years of self-control nearly went out the window when I saw that blue silk pajama set she convinced Bella to buy._ ” Edward responded, and the nomadic trio shared a look before following my mate and brothers as they made their way home.**

**“ _Did you see the set on Bella or just see it?_ ” Emmett asked, and Edward narrowed his eyes.**

**“ _Watch it, baby brother._ ” Jasper warned, but Edward shrugged him off and responded. “ _I’ve trained you both, so I know he can kick your ass if he’s motivated enough._ ”**

**“ _Jasper, it’s fine. Emmett asked a valid question, and the answer is yes. I saw it in the bag when she had me sneak it up to her room so Charlie wouldn’t see it, and then she wore it to bed last night._ ” Edward said, and both of the other two laughed. “ _At the very least, I got to appreciate what I saw. I’m not sure that Jasper ever takes the time._ ”**

**“ _Alright, little brother, I guess we’re going’ down this road. Don’t you dare accuse me of not takin’ the time to be thankful that, out of all the men in the world, that beautiful woman picked me._ ” Jasper said, and neither his expression nor his voice held any malice as he spoke despite his initial word choice. “ _I don’t understand why she chose me half the time, especially when she looks the way she does in that little black number from last night, but I can’t possibly take any more time to appreciate her than I already do; neither Alice nor I have that much patience._ ”**

**The three continued goofing around, discussing their mates, and just being brothers. Above them, just slightly out of smelling range, the nomads spoke to one another about the three males down below in hushed tones.**

**“ _This is the coven with a claim on this territory?_ ” the woman asked. “ _How can the be so well-groomed or have luxuries like lingerie?_ ”**

**“ _They must be the young ones of the coven. The blonde referred to the other two as his brothers, and I’ve only ever heard of the much older covens using that sort of language to describe one another. They can’t be the coven’s leaders if the redhead is older than the brawny one but is only in his late nineties to early hundreds._ ” the darker one said.**

**“ _Laurent, which covens have you heard of that have a number of at least six, if not more?_ ” the plain one asked.**

**“ _The coven that killed my sisters and took Heidi has over thirty members, and Maria’s coven used to be a lot larger before the Major got away; other than that, I haven’t heard of or seen one with more than three or four vampires since my own was destroyed._ ” the woman said before the darker one could answer.**

**“ _Victoria is correct on both accounts, but there have been rumors of another coven of great size for decades. They started out as two separate covens, but location and circumstance brought them together. They live apart for years at a time, but they consider one another to be a part of their family no matter the distance according to the stories I’ve heard. One side consists of three Slavic sisters and a Spanish couple. The other is said to be led by a husband and wife who have taken in at least four vampires changed in their late teens to early twenties._ ” Laurent told the pair, and they looked at him in surprise.**

**“ _Why haven’t you told James and me about them before now?_ ” Victoria asked.**

**“ _I wasn’t sure they actually existed. According to all the stories I’ve heard from other nomads, this coven has unparalleled self-control that allows them to blend in almost seamlessly with humans and live amongst them without suspicion. Some have even said that they don’t hunt humans at all, preferring animal blood as an alternative. With claims like these, I didn’t want to say something and have the stories I was hearing turn out to be untrue._ ” he explained.**

**“ _Well, it looks like the stories might be true after all, Laurent._ ” The plain one, James, said.**

**“ _And it sounds like they have our girl._ ” Laurent added in as he nodded. “ _We have to find out what we’re up against before we go into another coven’s dwelling._ ”**

**“ _If we continue following them, we’ll find our answers._ ” James told the other two, and then the vision faded away.**

I sat straight up in the tub, my heart pounding at what I’d just seen. Seconds later, the door burst open to reveal a panicked Rosalie and Esme who promptly rushed to my side. Esme pulled me from the tub and wrapped me in my yellow towel, and Rosalie tossed the clothes I’d unintentionally soaked by splashing during the vision into the laundry hamper.

“What did you see, little sister? Do I need to call the boys home?” Rosalie asked, kneeling in front of me.

“Don’t call them; they can’t come home.” I told her. “The nomads found them in the forest and are stalking them to find the rest of us.”

“Rosalie, send all three of them a text message and then stay with your sister. I’m going to call your father to let him know what’s going on, and then I’ll call the cousins. Our safest bet is to have the boys go to Denali Lodge for a night or two, that way the nomads don’t find the house and more importantly don’t find Alice.” Esme said, and we both nodded and agreed, me more shakily than Rose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: What, you didn’t actually think things were going to go strictly according to plan, did you, sweets? I promise that things will get back on track and that all vampires who deserve it will return home safely. Until next time!


	13. The Calm Before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I dreamed I was missing/You were so scared/But no one would listen/Cause no one else cared/After my dreaming/I woke with this fear/What am I leaving/When I'm done here?/So, if you're asking me, I want you to know/When my time comes/Forget the wrong that I've done/Help me leave behind some reasons to be missed/And don't resent me/And when you're feeling empty/Keep me in your memory/Leave out all the rest/Leave out all the rest..."  
>  -"Leave Out All The Rest," Linkin Park

Stepping out of my closet twenty minutes after the vision of the nomads stalking the boys, I found Rosalie sitting on my bed with Bella and a stack of bridal magazines. I stared at them in confusion, trying to determine when Bella had arrived and how I hadn’t heard her truck entering the garage given the amount of noise it made. Rosalie noticed and let slip a soft laugh.

“Edward, Emmett, and Jasper are on their way to Alaska, but they all insisted that we not leave either of you unattended since both of your names were said during their hunt. Mine was too, but I can take care of myself against the nomads, especially with help from Mom and Dad, so we thought it would be a good idea to bring Bella here. Charlie thinks the boys are camping this weekend, so Bella’s staying here with us for a girl’s night. Mom picked her up while you were getting dressed.” Rosalie said, and I nodded while joining them on the bed.

“So, aside from them being stalked by nomadic vampires with an evil agenda, did you find out anything interesting about what the guys talk about when we’re not around them?” Bella asked as a way of distracting me and lightening the mood.

“I’m just gonna guess that sex and women came up in the conversation.” Rosalie said with a snort, and I laughed.

“That was most of the conversation!” I responded amidst my laughing.

“Guys can be so predictable sometimes.” she added, flipping through one of the magazines.

“The other part of the conversation was Jasper telling Emmett that Edward can totally kick his ass if motivated enough.” I said, and each of them fixed me with a different expression.

“What did Emmett do?” Rosalie asked, shaking her head with a small grin on her face.

“Can Edward actually beat Emmett?” Bella asked at the same time, disbelief clear in her eyes.

“Edward mentioned how ninety years of self-control almost flew out the window when he saw Bella’s new pajamas, and Emmett asked if he just saw them in general or if he actually saw them on Bella.” I told them, giggling at both the memory of the vision and my sisters’ expressions. “As for whether Edward can beat Emmett, it’s been known to happen. Like Jasper said in my vision, he trained both of them and knows what they’re capable of in a fight.”

Rosalie began to pester Bella about the pajamas thing, and I grabbed a magazine from the stack. This evolved into Bella throwing me under the metaphorical bus by telling Rosalie about why she ended up buying anything from Victoria’s Secret, and Rosalie made mention of going to one of the specialty boutiques in Seattle to stock up on new lingerie for her honeymoon. This set off a thought in both mine and Bella’s minds simultaneously, and we began laughing much to Rosalie’s confusion.

“We’re sorry for laughing, Rose, but I made Alice check the future before I would by the damn pajamas, and she knew we were going with you to that store.” Bella explained.

“We’re laughing because we’re going to apparently make mention of it where Jessica Stanley knows where we’re going because we’re going to run into her while there.” I added, and Rosalie laughed along with us in understanding.

“At least I know you’ll both go. I need you opinions since we narrowed down our honeymoon destination to one of three places.” she told us once we’d calmed down a bit.

“Where to, Rose?” I asked, and she reached under the magazine stack and slid out the wedding binder she’d bought earlier in the week.

“Well, we have one idea for each of three continents. In South America, there’s this place in Patagonia that we just love and went to for our forty-fifth anniversary; in Africa, there’s this beautiful lodge in Tanzania that has the most amazing views and is really close to where we’d go on a vampire’s version of safari; and in Australia, there’s this place on the beach near the Great Barrier Reef.” she said as Bella and I looked at the pages in the binder she was showing us.

“If you’ve already done Patagonia, then I’d pick Tanzania.” Bella said with a shrug. “You and Emmett won’t be able to do any of the normal Honeymoon/Tourist stuff at the Great Barrier Reef due to the sun, so vampire’s safari sounds like the better option.”

“I agree with Bella; it’s what makes the most sense.” I said, and Rosalie gave us a smile and a nod.

“You’re both right, and I think Emmett will agree when I tell him.” she said before her expression saddened. “This weekend sucks; I miss Emmett.”

“Believe me, we understand that one completely.” Bella said in a dry tone. “At least the cousins know to leave Emmett and Jasper alone unless they want to fight. Tanya hasn’t officially met me yet, so she’s probably still got it in her head that she’s still got a chance with Edward because I’m still human.”

“From what Alice has seen, all you’ve gotta do is introduce her to Caleb Scott.” Rosalie said, marking the page in the binder with the Tanzanian honeymoon idea.

“It’s true, he’s even there when we stand against the Volturi after the kids are born.” I added, and Bella snorted.

“Great, that’s another thing that can be done at the wedding. Is Alice gonna have this much to do as my maid of honor?” she asked, and I laughed aloud.

“Bella, I’m your maid of honor, wedding planner, and makeup artist on top of already being emotional support as your sister. Between the three of us, Rosalie gets the easy job.” I said, and we both turned to see Rosalie snickering.

“I’m emotional support as well as hair stylist, for both of you, and my main job as Alice’s maid of honor is going to be keeping Emmett in line.” she pointed out, and the three of us fell into another round of laughter.

Throughout the day, I kept part of my focus on the future to see when the boys would be able to come home. From what I had seen, the nomads had followed them all the way to Denali Lodge before realizing that this wasn’t the house they were looking for and decided to backtrack. They would be back closer to Seattle by the following afternoon, and the boys would be home by that night. I sent Jasper a text and let Carlisle and Esme know about this before I went upstairs to bed. I passed by Edward and Bella’s room on my way and poked my head in the door to tell Bella the news. She just smiled and gave me a thumbs up while holding her phone to her ear. I mouthed ‘Edward,’ and she nodded. I continued down the hall, passing my room to peek into Rosalie and Emmett’s room to see my older sister also on her cellphone. I smiled and made my way back to my room, stepping into the closet in search of nightwear.

I had an entire block of the closet set aside just for pajamas that I wasn’t even sure I’d use after the change. Rosalie had gone above and beyond when she’d done the initial stock of my closet the year before, and I had plenty of options for what to wear to sleep. The set I’d ultimately settled on was a gray tank top with pink, flannel pants. As I was heading back into my room, I caught sight of Jasper’s rack of sweaters, hoodies, and sweatshirts. It took me only enough time to pull one of the chairs over to the rack and climb into it to steal a soft, gray cardigan from its hanger and slip into it. After putting the chair back, I brought the fabric near my neck to my face and inhaled Jasper’s scent. Honey mixed with lavender, a scent that was just as smooth, sweet, and calming as my mate, filled my nostrils and left me feeling more content than I had all day. Despite how much I missed having Jasper himself beside me in the bed, I slept well that night with his smell surrounding me.

Sunday seem to drag on as we waited the following day for the guys to return. Carlisle had left not long after I knew that the nomads had reached Seattle for his shift at the hospital, and Esme tried to offer a distraction by gathering the supplies to do a full Spa Day for the four of us. Manicures, pedicures, facials, makeup, and hairstyling took up just enough time to be a distraction, though it did little to curb the anxiousness I felt. That, I knew, wouldn’t settle itself until Jasper was home. So, while I waited, I sat in the family room with Bella, Rosalie, and Esme while _A Cinderella Story_ played on the television. Bella still felt unsure about her manicure, a sparkling dark blue base polish with black tips, and I was being as reassuring as I could when I told her that Edward would love it. I myself had gone with a black base polish with little white daisies with yellow centers on top.

“You have a fairly simple manicure, dear, like mine.” Esme said as she inspected her own lilac nails. “Besides, it doesn’t matter what anyone but you thinks because the point of mani/pedis is to make you feel good about yourself.”

“Not to mention that your nails, as beautiful as they are, won’t be seen as being as ostentatious as mine.” Rosalie noted, holding up a freshly manicured hand that showed sparkly red polish on her thumb, index finger, and pinky with the two remaining fingers being a black base topped with blood red roses.

“Besides, it gives you another point.” I said, making my sisters laugh and mother furrow her brow in confusion.

“Point?” Esme asked, and we all laughed harder for a few seconds before at least one of us calmed down enough to use words.

“The three of us have been keeping a tally of points for each time one of us has something in common with you or Dad.” Rosalie said, still smiling. “I lean more towards you, while Bella leans more towards Dad.”

“I’m split straight down the middle at the moment.” I said with a grin, and Esme laughed mirthfully.

“Oddly, I expected this to be the case the second you explained yourselves.” she told us. “I love you girls.”

“We love you, too.” the three of us chorused, and the movie played on before us.

As darkness fell and I found myself growing more and more tired, but the anxiousness of knowing that Jasper was on his way home wouldn’t let my mind quiet down enough for sleep. I went upstairs to my room and sat on my bed with my sketchbook in my lap; as I couldn’t sleep, working would help. I busied myself with refining the sketch I’d initially done of Rosalie’s wedding gown, an effort towards making the following weekend go that much smoother since this would be the first time Tanya would actually meet Bella, and I lost all awareness of my surroundings the longer I drew. I didn’t hear the door when it opened, nor did I hear the sound of boots making their way across the hardwood floors. The first thing to alert me to another presence being in the room with me was when the bed dipped down on my right-hand side. I felt arms wrap themselves around me and pull me close, and I smiled as I breathed in that same honey-and-lavender scent I’d surrounded myself with the previous night.

“I’m glad you’re home.” I said.

“That makes two of us.” Jasper responded, dropping a kiss onto my hair. “You should probably get some sleep; it is a school night, Darlin’.”

“Now that you’re back home, I can sleep. I was too anxious to sleep knowing that you were on your way here.” I said, closing my sketchbook and setting it on my bedside table.

“Are you wearin’ my sweater?” he asked, and I nodded against his chest as I got under the covers and curled into his side.

“I couldn’t sleep last night either, so I grabbed it from your side of the closet. It helped.” I told him.

“How?” he wondered.

“It smells like you, honey and lavender.” I said sleepily, and I was out before I could hear his response.

When I made it down to breakfast the next morning and saw Bella already at the kitchen island, I was suddenly grateful for my vision of the nomads. Checking our near future, I smiled and told Jasper to go grab Carlisle’s birthday present from our closet. Edward was helping Esme prepare breakfast, and Rosalie and Emmett were watching the morning news in the family room. From what I had just seen, Bella and I would have just enough time to eat breakfast before Carlisle would get home from work.

Rosalie took the present from Jasper when he came back down stairs, and he sat down at the island beside me while she placed the present in Carlisle’s chair where the large, gold bow would be hard to miss. Bella and I ate breakfast in relative silence, but I noticed the way my sister’s eyes flittered down to her nails and then up to her mate as if she was worried about what he thought. Edward looked at me with a curious expression to which I responded with a single thought. ‘ _Say something to her, genius!’_

“I see you ladies had a Spa Day while us guys were out of the house.” he spoke up, finally, and I resisted the urge to snort. “Bella, your nails look very nice. You picked a good color”

“If she lets me do it, I offered to put some highlights in her hair the next time we have a Girls’ Night.” Rosalie said from the family room. “It wouldn’t be anything major, really, just enough color to giver her hair some depth.”

“I need a little more time to think about it, Rose, but maybe.” Bella said to our sister before turning to Edward. “Thanks, I’m glad you like it. I was worried that it was too much, but Alice and Rose said that it wasn’t as flashy as either of theirs.”

“Sometimes, it’s the simple things that make us the happiest.” Esme said as she washed dishes, and a chuckle from the stairs gained everyone’s attention.

“Somehow, I feel like that comment is aimed at me.” Carlisle said as he walked over and pressed a kiss to Esme’s hair.

“An entire island?” she asked him, and he smiled.

“You know you love it.” he told her, and she smiled back.

“You’ve also gotten much better with your gift-giving skills.” she replied teasingly before turning to kiss him. “Happy birthday, darling.”

“Thank you, love.” he said, turning to face us kids but stopping when he caught sight of the bow. “What’s this?”

“Happy birthday, Dad!” the six of us chorused, and he crossed the room to open the large, rectangular box to find a rectangular case inside with a note stuck to the front that read ‘Open Me.’

“We all decided to get you the one gift because we know how much you miss your old one.” Emmett said, a guilty expression crossing his face for a brief moment. “Sorry, again.”

“It was Bella’s idea, technically, and Edward knows a guy.” Rosalie continued as Carlisle opened the case, and I watch his expression shift from amusement to genuine happiness as he took the Gibson Les Paul Studio Hot Rod into his hands.

“He loves it.” Jasper told us.

“The amp’s in your office. Mom had me move it from mine and Bella’s closet once I got home last night.” Edward added, and Carlisle turned towards us again.

“Emmett, you’ve been forgiven for quite some time, so there’s nothing to be sorry for at this point. Jasper is right, though. I love it, and I love all of you.” he said, making eye contact with each of us as he spoke.

“Look at the back.” I said, and he turned the guitar over to see where we’d had the family crest painted on the glossy mahogany surface. “We also ordered a pack of custom guitar picks, and those will be in by this afternoon according to what I saw when I looked up the tracking number.”

“Dad and I can keep an ear out for them, but you kids need to get going before you’re late for school.” Esme said, and we all scrambled to find our bags and start towards the garage, though I hung back longer than the others.

“Happy birthday, Dad.” I told him as I handed him a drawing I’d done on Saturday after Bella and I had helped Rosalie with her honeymoon selection. “Jasper and I wanted you to be the first to know, well, you and Mom.”

“Matthew?” he asked, surprised, and I nodded.

“What is it?” Esme asked as she walked over to where we stood to peer at the image herself, a soft smile forming on her face. “Her third name is Ann?”

“After what Edward and Bella decided on, we wanted their names to have significant meaning to us. No one else means more to both of us than our family.” I said, hugging them both before making my way downstairs and getting in the Volvo with Edward and Bella.

The remainder of the week went without incident. We’d been nowhere near being late for school on Monday, but Edward and Jasper insisted that it was better to believe that than know why our mother had actually wanted us to leave so quickly. Thursday night, Emmett and Rosalie left to pick up Jasper’s birthday present. I knew about what time they would return, so I convinced Jasper to leave for our spot at a quarter-until-midnight. Once we were there, the dark purple wrap dress I’d been wearing had been quickly discarded; this didn’t stop Jasper from taking his time just admiring me, and I made no indication that I was in any sort of hurry for him to stop.

“Damn, you’re beautiful, Darlin’.” he said as he stepped closer towards me.

“And I’m all yours whether you think you deserve me or not.” I told him before pulling him in for a soft, loving kiss.

After that initial kiss, his clothes didn’t last much longer either. We didn’t rush; Jasper, in fact, took a very careful approach to fully undressing me as to not tear the lingerie I’d been wearing. Every kiss, every touch, every look he gave me allowed his emotions to bleed through to me while my own were thrown back at him in waves. It was amazing.

It was almost two be the time we made it home, and I could tell that Jasper was curious when I didn’t immediately get into bed after my shower. I giggled and held out my hand. He took it without hesitation purely because he trusted me. When we reached the garage, I turned to look at him only to see his face twisted into an expression of immense surprise and delight at the sight of the Ford F350 parked between Emmett’s Jeep and Edward’s Volvo.

“Happy birthday, honey.” I told him, handing him the keys that Rosalie had left for me in my bathroom.

“How?” was all he asked, and I giggled.

“I’m gonna hold off on getting a new car for now. I don’t go anywhere without you or someone else in our family for the most part, so I don’t really need one at the moment; Dad says I can wait until next year and just get my car as my graduation present. If I need to go anywhere on my own or whatever, Mom’s said I can likely borrow her car because she doesn’t go places on her own very often either. You, however, have never had a car of your own, and I thought that this truck would be perfect for you.” I explained, and he kissed me.

“I love it, Darlin’, and I love you all the more for doing this.” Jasper said softly, wrapping an arm around me and leading me back upstairs. “We’ll see how she runs in the morning when we go to school; Edward and Bella will probably enjoy the privacy.”

During lunch that day, Lauren nervously approached our table. She greeted us all in a polite manner and then asked me if I could pick Cynthia up from school that afternoon. I looked over at my mate and siblings for an answer, but none of them were of much help.

“The girls and I are leaving with Mom this afternoon for a weekend of wedding shopping.” I said, but Jasper seemed to get an idea that Edward approved of judging by the way he nodded.

“I can pick her up and take her back to Catherine’s.” he offered. “She’s almost my little sister, too, so I don’t mind.”

“Thank you so much, Jasper, really!” Lauren said in relief. “Embry’s been seriously sick for the last week, they think it might be mono, but I doubt it, so I’ve been covering Seth’s tutoring for him. I have to go straight to the rez after school, otherwise I’d get her myself.”

“It’s not a problem, Lauren.” Jasper reiterated, and my cousin smiled, thanked us both again, and returned to her table.

“You’ll tell Catherine about the incident over last weekend when you drop Cynthia off then?” Edward asked, and Jasper nodded.

“She’ll tell Billy and the others, and she needs to know anyway.” he replied.

“Cynthia’s gonna love getting’ to see you, though.” I giggled. “She loves her big brother.”

When school let out that afternoon, my sisters and I kissed our mates goodbye in the parking lot and got into Rosalie’s car for the drive to the airport. Our bags had been packed for the last two days, and our passports were in the glovebox. Bella had had to reassure Charlie that she would be perfectly fine spending the weekend with us in the London area, and Esme had been a major part of convincing him to let Bella go on the trip.

“Okay, so we know roughly how Tanya’s going to like me, but what about the other cousins?” Bella asked from the front seat as Rosalie drove the now-familiar route from Forks to Seattle.

“Oh, well, Carmen loves everybody. Unless you do something to harm her friends or family, she would never actively hate you.” our sister began. “Though you won’t meet him until we come back, Eleazar is much the same and is excited to read your abilities since he knows about them.”

“Irina still gets a little weary around humans every now and then, and she was very passive-aggressive towards me when she came down for the Halloween party, but Kate and Garrett both already love you. Elliot, as the only human, thinks your gift is pretty cool and is happy that you won’t judge him for being gay.” I added, and Bella nodded.

“What all do they know? I mean, you guys have all said that you told them about the vision of us standing against the Volturi, but do they know any details beyond that?” she asked, and Rose and I shared a look before I responded.

“We’ve kept everything about the kids, even Bree, to just the people in our household. While Rosalie mentioned that Mom and Dad have grandkids, and I mentioned both of Jacob’s imprint’s parents being at the meeting, I never said who said parents were. For all any of the cousins know, she was talking about Peter and Charlotte while I was talking about the witches or merpeople.” I told her, and she appeared confused.

“Why not tell them?” she asked.

“It’s not that we don’t want to, Bella, trust me.” Rosalie said. “It’s mostly the fact that, Alice’s research with Gwen aside, we still don’t know very much about Dhampir and how they develop. While I don’t believe that they’re anything like immortal children, even the slightest similarity between the two might be too much for the cousins to handle, especially after how Sasha died.”

“Is there a way we can find out more about what our kids will be like that isn’t trial and error?” Bella asked, and Rosalie shook her head.

“Not that we know of, otherwise we’d probably already have started it.” she said, but I bit my lip before voicing my own opinion.

“Well, there is one thing we could try, but it would have to wait until this summer.” I said, getting both of their attention.

“What is it?” Bella asked.

“I’ve thought about it a few times while reflecting on what I read at Gwen’s, and there’s something about Dhampir which has no further explanation than a couple of sentences in an old book. After they were wiped out in the Balkans, there’s mention of at least one of them in Brazil among the Ticuna tribe’s legends; so, I've been doing research into the legends and reports from the area. The legend says that the man originated in the western side of the continent among the Mapuche people of Chile, and he migrated East sometime in the last hundred or so years based upon all recent recorded sightings. His traveling companion is a woman who much resembles him, and they have been called upon by tribal elders to end the suffering of those who are in immense pain and aren’t likely to survive whatever ails them. I thought that this man would have to be a Dhampir because he’s a land-walker who drinks human blood but doesn’t sparkle in direct sunlight. All the reports I’ve found talk about him glowing in the sun, and that’s a Dhampir characteristic. If we could send someone to Brazil to investigate these sightings, we might be able to find something.” I explained, and my sisters both gave me looks of amazement.

“We have friends, sort of, who live in the Amazon and might know something about this.” Rosalie said, smile widening as she continued. “Zafrina, Senna, and Kachiri crossed paths with us in the 40s when we were on a hunting trip not long after Dad bought Mom her island, Isle Esme, off the coast of Brazil; they’ve lived in the jungle for centuries and were weirded out by our diet, like most vampires, but liked that we were such genuine people. I’m sure that either Mom and Dad or me and Emmett could make the trip over the summer.”

“Where have you been hiding this information, Alice?” Bella asked, a joking smile on her face. “Edward’s never mentioned any of this to me.”

“Edward doesn’t exactly know.” I admitted. “I started my research into the South America thing when everyone would go hunting, so he was never around to hear my thoughts while finding online message boards and reported sightings of the Dhampir man in Brazil; I really only research when I have nothing else to do, and I’m normally doing something when everyone else is home.”

“This is going to be an exciting summer, I’m sure of it.” Rosalie said, and I saw Bella roll her eyes.

“We have to survive the nomads and prom first.” she said dryly, and I laughed while Rosalie merely sighed and turned up the radio.

The plane we took to England was the same one I’d been on a year earlier when I’d first come to Forks, and Bella and I made quick use of the tables to get some homework done. The trip was a nine-hour flight, and we would have to sleep at some point, so getting our homework out of the way sooner was easily the better option. While we worked, Rosalie filled Esme in on what we’d discussed in the car. Esme was just as excited as the three of us, and she’d even volunteered Carlisle and herself for the job. By the time we’d landed at the airport and stepped off the jet, the cousins were there waiting beside a large, dark-colored van. Esme explained to us that she had hired a car service to take us to the hotel and to take us to the bridal salon the next day before bringing us back to the airport after Bell and I had lunch. It was already after seven on Saturday, so Bella and I just got into the van with Rosalie after barely acknowledging the cousins. The time difference and jet lag was catching up to the both of us, and Mom had the forethought to call ahead to the hotel and order room service for us. Bella and I were both asleep by ten-thirty.

The next morning, we woke up and got ready while taking breaks to eat the breakfast that Esme had ordered for us. We met up with the cousins in the lobby, and this time we took the time to greet them properly and formally introduce Bella to them while Esme handled check-out at the desk. Carmen had pulled Bella into a hug almost instantly once the introductions were finished.

“Edward had so many good things to say about you on his last visit to Denali, mi prima Isabela!” she said excitedly, and I stifled a giggle as Bella hugged Carmen back in the same resigned but happy manner she did me when I became overexcited.

“She’s not lying, Bella, he really did talk about you almost the entire time; I’ve never seen him like that. I think he only stopped so that he could call you after Jasper said Alice knew when they could go home.” Kate added, giving Bella a hug much less fierce than Carmen’s.

“It’s really great to meet all of you in person. Like I said a few weeks ago at the meeting, I’m an only child and having a big family is still new to me.” Bella told the four cousins, and I watched as Esme put a hand on her shoulder supportively as she joined us.

“I believe that’s another point for you, dear.” she said, and my sisters and I giggled.

“I think that point counts towards both sides, though, Mom.” I told her. “Dad’s an only child too.”

“It can be half-a-point in each direction.” Rosalie declared, confusing the cousins further.

“Can we be let in on the joke?” Irina asked, and Esme turned to the three of us.

“After comparing stories at the meeting, Alice, Bella, and I started keeping a running tally of points to see who’s most like Mom and who’s most like Dad.” Rosalie explained as we walked out to the waiting van. “I’m more like Mom, and Bella’s more like Dad, but Alice is straight down the middle.”

Tanya didn’t speak much on the ride from the hotel to the salon. Irina was making an attempt at being polite, but her words were aimed mostly at her sisters, Carmen, Rosalie, and Esme rather than Bella or me. Kate and Carmen were all in on engaging with Bella, and Carmen and I hadn’t really stopped communicating since we’d met back during the cousins’ previous visit. When we went into the salon, Rosalie asked for my sketchbook. I gave it to her with it opened to the page I knew she wanted. She closed it back just as a bridal consultant made her way over to our group.

“Good morning, ladies. Which of you is the lovely Rosalie?” she asked, and my older sister raised her hand.

“That would be me.” she said, and I could tell that the consultant was slightly thrown by her American accent.

“My name is Georgia, and I’ll be your consultant today. Do you mind if I ask who all we have here?” she replied, and my sister handled the situation with grace.

“Well, this is my foster mother and future mother-in-law, Esme, and these are my foster sisters and sisters-in-law, Alice and Bella, along with our cousins, Tanya, Kate, Irina, and Carmen.” she answered, and Georgia’s eyes widened.

“There must be quite the story behind this big family.” she prodded, and Rosalie nodded.

“I have a twin brother, and we went into foster care when we were in our early teens. The family we were placed with, Dr. Carlisle Cullen and his wife, Esme, had already adopted two boys, my fiancé, Emmett, and my foster brother, Edward, before adopting Alice a short time afterwards. Bella joined the family most recently, and she’s engaged to Edward, while Alice is engaged to Jasper, my brother. Bella is actually my maid of honor.” my blonde sister said, and I smirked as both Georgia and the cousins attempted to conceal their surprise.

“We’re here today to not only find a dress for Rosalie, but also to find bridesmaids dresses for Bella, Alice, and Kate.” Esme added, and Georgia nodded.

“Well, do we have any idea what we’re looking for as far as the bridal gown goes?” she asked, and Rosalie looked to me.

“I have a sketch that I did of what Rose described to me, and it’s something like this.” I said as I turned the sketchbook around for Georgia to see. “We’re looking for ¾ sleeves, heavy beading on the main dress, preferably in a Fit-n-Flare silhouette, with a detachable overskirt with mild to moderate beading.”

“And what can you tell me about the big day?” she asked, and Bella took over this time.

“We live in a small town that’s pretty much surrounded by forest land, so the wedding’s taking place in our backyard. There’s an enchanted forest theme with lost of roses and irises everywhere the eye can see, and Emmett is a big fan of embracing as much of the natural setting as possible.” she said quicker than I thought she could’ve managed.

“I’m a major fan of the natural aesthetic as well, but there’s going to be a significant amount of finery dressing up the forest. My ultimate goal is to feel like a fairytale princess on the 22 of June.” Rosalie added.

“So soon?” Georgia asked, concerned.

“Ordinarily, we would’ve waited until June of next year, but our timeline got moved up because Emmett and I were actually told that we can move forward in adopting a child the sooner we were married. We both want children, but I was in an accident when I was a child myself that damaged my reproductive organs. So, this is our only shot.” Rosalie explained, and Bella and I both leaned into her as she told the thinly veiled story of why she was getting married in two months.

“Well, you look to be as close to a sample size as you could be, so I have no doubt we’ll find you the dress of your dreams. Come with me, please?” Georgia said, and Rosalie followed as she walked towards the dressing rooms.

Once they were gone, Carmen turned to me and asked why we had to make the trip to England for Rosalie’s dress. I told her how the dress I’d seen in my vision was made by an Italian designer who didn’t sell their dresses outside of Europe; having seen and fallen in love with my sketch, Rosalie wasn’t going to settle for anything less. I couldn’t find it in me to blame my sister after having seen how she looked in it.

“So, Alice, why didn’t Rosalie pick you to be her maid of honor when you’ve been doing so much of the planning?” Tanya asked, and I knew she was trying to make some sort of dig at Bella.

“Oh, I was never an option; it was always going to be Bella.” I said, unbothered. “The three of us made a pact after Emmett proposed. Bella will be Rosalie’s maid of honor, I’ll be Bella’s, and Rosalie will be mine.”

“Wait, Emmett actually proposed again? I thought this was all just so Rosalie could have her big, show-stopping moment like she does every ten years or so?” Irina asked, and I shook my head.

“What she was saying about the adoption is true. We have our suspicions of how, but she and Emmett are going to be taking in a rogue newborn by this time next year. They both talked about it before Emmett planned anything out, and they want to have one more formal wedding before they have a child.” I explained, being as light on the details about Bree as I could manage.

“He proposed the day before the meeting a few weeks ago, and it’s been non-stop planning ever since. I didn’t even know that there were that many bridal magazines in print until Rosalie dropped all of the ones she has on Alice’s bed for us to sort through.” Bella added with a chuckle.

“Which is ironic since you just helped Renée with hers and Phil’s wedding.” I noted, and she bumped me with her shoulder.

“Renée ?” Carmen asked curiously as I bumped Bella back.

“My human mom.” she said almost under her breath, and the other four nodded.

“Bella is well aware of how many mothers she has, and that number is, I believe, currently at three.” Esme said, smiling. “Well, at least it will be if something ever happens to Harry, seeing as how Sue never really got over Charlie in the first place.”

“I would put money on that, no doubt. If something were to happen to Harry Clearwater and my dad doesn’t end up with Sue, I will be shocked.” Bella agreed.

We stopped talking after this as Georgia led Rosalie back over to us. The dress was just as stunning as it had been in my vision, and I couldn’t help but smile at my big sister as she gazed at her reflection in the mirror before her. There was little doubt as to how much she loved the dress.

“This is perfect.” she said after turning around to face us.

“You look beautiful, dove.” Esme told her.

“Emmett is a very lucky man.” Bella told her, grinning. “You look amazing.”

“This is so your princess dream dress!” I squealed out happily, and Rosalie nodded eagerly as she and Bella joined in my merriment while the cousins continued to ply her with platitudes about her appearance.

While Rosalie got changed and Esme paid for the dress, Bella and I browsed through racks of wedding dresses and discussed what we might be looking for ourselves in the near future. While I preferred shorter dresses with a more vintage look to them, Bella was different. She had much longer arms and legs than mine, and she could wear certain styles that I would never be able to make work for me. She did like the vintage style, though. When Rosalie rejoined us, she got the cousins’ attention and told Esme that we were walking over to the other side store that held the bridesmaids dresses to get a head start on finding dresses we liked. Esme agreed to meet us there, but the look I saw cross her face held a hint of anger. I decided to ask her about it later.

“Later,” ended up being on the plane ride home. Thanks to my sketches, it hadn’t taken us much more time to find three blush colored bridesmaids dresses than it had to find Rosalie’s gown. We’d even found a Mother-of-the-Bride/Groom dress for Esme in the same shade. Lunch for Bella and I had been a somewhat rushed trip to the nearest fast-food joint in order to make it back to the airport in time, and neither she nor I were majorly disappointed to see two jets being prepared. The cousins had elected to take their plane back to Alaska where Carmen and Kate would be staying behind with Garrett and Elliot while Eleazar made the trip to Forks with Tanya and Irina later in the week for the baseball game; staying home had been a sudden choice for Carmen, and I had a sneaking suspicion that it had to do more with Tanya than anything else. The flight back was much like the flight there; Bella had fallen asleep a few hours in, and I brought up what I’d seen to Esme while Rose was putting the finishing touches on an essay for her English class. My mother didn’t bother denying being put off by Tanya’s behavior towards Bella. If anything, she embraced it.

“She never said anything outwardly antagonistic directly to Bella, but I know what her intentions were with that question about why you weren’t the maid of honor. At the end of the day, I’m a mom first; I don’t care if she if family, Tanya isn’t going to be hateful to one of my children and think that she can get away without consequences.” Esme told me. “As far as I’m concerned, Bella is just as much my daughter as you or Rosalie, and she deserves the same respect given to the both of you.”

“I still don’t understand her obsession with Edward.” I said, my eyes dropping back down to my sketchbook. “It’s actually sort of gross and makes Tanya seem super desperate to find her mate.”

“See, Mom, I told you I wasn’t the only one who thought that!” Rosalie called from the table to where Mom and I sat on the couch.

“Not only is there the fact that he’s made it clear that he wants nothing to do with her beyond the relationship between cousins, but she’s also physically older than him by a decent margin. Tanya had to be in her mid to late twenties when Sasha turned her, being close to ‘Old Maid’ status being the only logical way an unmarried girl could’ve disappeared without question, and Edward’s barely seventeen!” I said, crinkling my nose. “Jasper may be 145 years older than me according to a calendar, but at least he’s technically only physically about three years older than me now and will only be a year older than me when I’m turned.”

“Emmett and I are literally only a few months apart in age.” Rosalie added, her expression showing that she didn’t understand Tanya very much either. “Bella’s going to be almost two years physically older than Edward, which gives her another point Mom’s direction, so I don’t understand where Tanya’s mind is on this.”

“Hey, I agree with you girls. Tanya’s fixation on your brother is inappropriate, and I surely hope that she meets Caleb at the wedding and moves past these feelings she has for Edward so that we can all quit feeling the tension she generates around him.” Esme told us, and we both gave noises of agreement before returning to our respective tasks. “Jasper’s had trouble not projecting the last few times it’s happened, and you both know how intense emotions have to be for him to be unable to temper or eradicate them.”

“I’m just glad that Kate didn’t still have feelings like that for Jasper when I joined this family.” I said, and Esme chuckled lightly. “I don’t share very well.”

“Sweetheart, that’s just another point for you. Sometime this summer, you and Bella should really accompany me to the hospital one day when I go to remind the nurses exactly how taken your father is, okay? I think you’d both somewhat enjoy the experience.” she told me, and I heard Rosalie snicker.

“I’ve seen it before, and it’s always hilarious.” my sister said, eyes never leaving the page as she worked. “At one hospital Dad worked at, the nurses invented a new code just for Mom’s visits. Hearing the words ‘Code Caramel’ was always their worst nightmare.”

I laughed as I heard this, the mental image of disheartened nurses looking on as my father gazed lovingly at my mother before being pulled by her into a soft, passionate kiss floating through my brain. On some level, I understood that I did pity these women to an extent. Dad barely registered any woman who wasn’t Mom that didn’t need his attention; while he might seem like a dreamy, aloof sort of man at first, that entire illusion would shatter the instant Mom walked into the room. I had seen this first hand with the other vacationers we’d been around the previous summer in Orlando, and I had even told Jasper that they were what I wanted he and I to be fifty years down the line.

“The only nurse in Forks I’ve never had a problem with has been Sue Clearwater, for obvious reasons, so you’ll be in for quite the show.” Esme said as my laughter slowed.

“I’ll mention this to Bella once she’s awake.” I said, shaking my head and smiling down at my sketchpad.

When the plane landed, it was after seven o’clock. The sky was just beginning to get to twilight, and the only thing keeping any of the four of us from feeling the exhaustion of jetlag, something that not even vampires are totally immune to, was that we each knew that our mates were waiting for us at home. As Rosalie was busy doing a cursory check over my pre-cal homework for me, Esme drove us home. I didn’t know how fast my mother typically drove, but I was sure that she was going faster than was normal for her. We’d had a nice, if slightly rushed weekend, but I knew that she had been missing Carlisle as much as any of the three of us had missed our men.

My belief was proven correct when we entered the garage to find all four men waiting for us. Gathering our things, we split off into our respective pairs once inside the house. Once inside our room with Jasper, the jetlag was quick to catch up with me. He chuckled as I stumbled slightly on my way from the closet to the bed; I mock-glared at him, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling as he picked me up and set me on my side of the bed where he’d already pulled back the blankets.

“I’m so happy to be back home.” I told him as I pulled the blankets over my body. “It was fun, and Carmen and Kate absolutely loved Bella, but I wasn’t enjoying Tanya and Irina’s attempts at ruining the sisterhood between Rose, Bella, and me.”

“I think they’re just jealous of you three.” Jasper replied as he got under the covers on his side of the bed and opened his arms for me to snuggle into his side. “What’d they do, anyways?”

“Tanya made passive-aggressive remarks about me not being Rose’s maid of honor; Irina avoided talking to us as much as she could manage; and they tried roping Kate and Carmen in on their talking about Bella behind her back when they thought we couldn’t or wouldn’t hear them knowing that Mom and Rose could hear every word, but not realizing that they would tell Bella and me everything on the way home.” I explained, and he snorted.

“They’re definitely jealous.” he told me. “Ever since Kate and Garrett got together, things have changed for the three of them. It was always different with the three of them and Carmen because she came into the family with her mate and never had the same, ah, appetite for men that the three of them have. Now, Kate’s with Garrett and has lost interest in other men, thus isolating herself from her sisters while bringing her closer to Carmen because she’s the only other female in the house who understands.”

“But the three of us have always understood one another because none of us have ever been like that. We have our mates, and we’re content with our lives the way they are, so we rarely fight over anything. Mostly, if we fight, it’s over Bella’s reluctance to go shopping.” I said, recognizing the point he was making.

“Exactly, and, likely on at least some level that I’d be able to better ascertain when they next visit, they’re also jealous of you three still having your mother and of your mother not not being fulfilled by only having essentially grown children.” he added, and I smiled sadly.

“That isn’t anything I can fix, but it is something I can relate to somewhat.” I said, taking a breath before continuing as I knew all of my vampire family members could hear me. “I love Mom with as much love as a daughter could possibly have for her mother, but I still had to watch my mama die. I still have moments, though not usually longer than that, when I think about how lucky Bella and Edward’s little girl is going to be to have two, maybe three grandmothers who’ll love her so much it hurts but that our kids will only ever have the one, though she will be an amazing grandmother all the same. It hurts, but I don’t let it overwhelm me or affect my relationship with Bella; they shouldn’t let it occupy so much of their headspace either.”

“I think Kate is getting better with handling her emotions about that particular thing now that she is a mom, but the other two are different. Irina’s emotions have always been on the surface for longer than I’ve known her, and Tanya doesn’t have a tight enough lid on hers when it comes to certain topics. It’s of little wonder that anyone who doesn’t know better would think they were biologically sisters.” he said, and I smiled as a thought struck me.

“Speaking of sisters, how was Cynthia?” I asked, and he beamed.

“You were right, as usual, she was thrilled to see me. Well, she was upset for a minute or two when she realized that Lauren had gone to see Seth without her, but she shook it off when I told her that she’d probably see him over the weekend anyway since Catherine’s been spending most weekends at Billy’s since Christmas, I think.” Jasper told me, the happiness radiating off of him. “She made me a birthday card during her free time at school, I helped her with a history project, and we talked about what’s gonna happen next weekend.”

“I assume she’s okay with going to the rez, but what about the rest of it?” I asked, and he sighed. “It’s a lot to comprehend for anyone, but I don’t want Cynthia thinkin’ that we haven’t thought this whole thing through before doing it.”

“She wasn’t thrilled with our plans as a whole, but she understands them. Embry’s almost through the bodily changes that’ll allow him to phase, so Sam says that Paul’s gonna stay back on the rez with him while Sam and Jared join us for the game.” he told me, and I sighed as well.

“I’d rather her be safe and upset than happy but dead.” I told him, and he chuckled.

“Darlin’, I’m pretty sure that’s how we all feel right about now.” he said, and I let slip a light laugh of my own before yawning one last time and drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Okay, okay, I promise that the next chapter will be about preternatural baseball! It's been a rough week, sweets, and I'm working on getting the next set of chapters finished. Until next time, enjoy!


	14. Batter Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I remember black skies/The lightning all around me/I remember each flash/As time began to blur/Like a startling sign/That fate had finally found me/And your voice was all I heard/That I get what I deserve..."  
>  -"New Divide," by Linkin Park

The next week was tense. We knew that the nomads were close, watching and waiting for the time to make themselves known to my family. The knowing, while better than not knowing, left us all on edge as we tried going about our lives as if nothing had changed. Thursday afternoon, the first stages of our plans were in motion. Bella went home with us, everything having been planned to where she would be staying at our house while Harry Clearwater took Charlie fishing to help him get out of the funk that his investigation into the vampire-caused deaths had cause him. Billy would have ordinarily joined them, but he was insistent upon staying behind with my aunt, cousin, and baby sister. Embry was near phasing, and Paul would be stayin behind to help him through his first transformation in case one or more of the nomads made it to the rez. Friday, we went to school as though it was just another day. Angela quietly told me in art that the merfolk would be in the field in time for the baseball game the following afternoon, and Ben gave our group an almost imperceptible nod during lunch. At that moment, everything was lining up to work in our favor, but I couldn’t be certain. The final decision lie not with any of us but with the nomads we were hoping to stop before things could get dicey.

After school, we regrouped at home with Esme, Carlisle, and the newly arrived cousins. Tanya and Irina were just as distant with Bella, and Irina with me, as the previous weekend. Eleazar was pleasant and excited to finally meet Bella, just like his mate, and greeted her with a smile and a hug, also just like Carmen; privately, I wished she hadn’t been so upset by Tanya and Irina’s behavior that she decided against accompanying Eleazar down for the baseball game.

“I can sense her shield already.” he said as they parted, turning from Edward to Bella. “You are going to be quite powerful, Bella, more so than any other shield I’ve encountered.”

“Thanks, I think.” Bella replied, doing her best not to blush at the compliment.

“All that power she’s gonna have is gonna be put to the test as soon as she’s ready once she’s turned.” Jasper said, smiling over at our sister. “I can’t, in good conscience, let her go into a standoff with anyone without knowin’ how to properly fight.”

“Rosalie and I could use a new sparring partner, so it’ll be nice once the other girls can join us.” Esme added, winking over at me, and I giggled.

“Sparring partner? Esme, I thought you and Carlisle both were pacifists?” Tanya asked, surprised, looking from my parents, who were trying not to smile, to Eleazar, who was looking rather resigned. “Is this why Garrett mentioned us starting training six months ago out of nowhere?”

“Yes, it is. Alice told Jasper that we should prepare as well, and he mentioned it to Garrett and me because we’re the most experienced with battling large vampire armies.” Eleazar answered the part of Tanya’s statement directed at him, but he turned to my parents for the rest of it only to have Bella answer instead.

“They are, but Jasper’s putting everyone through training so we can be prepared for the Volturi as well as anyone else, like Maria and these nomads, who think it’s a good idea to mess with this family. It’s simple, really: touch one of their kids, and the gloves come off for Mom and Dad.” she said, smiling over at the mildly shocked Carlisle and Esme who had only ever heard Bella call them by those particular titles once or twice since her joining the family.

Tanya was silent, unsure of what to say after having Bella reaffirm her own place within the family. I watched Tanya as she watched Edward move the arm he’d had draped over Bella’s shoulders down to wrap it around her waist and pull her in for a short kiss. Tanya’s expression flickered briefly from heartbroken anger to sudden understanding, and I looked at Jasper to verify my thoughts of her finally accepting that Edward would never be hers. Jasper had also been watching, and he smiled softly at me before dropping a kiss onto my hair.

Saturday morning dawned a stormy gray, clouds as thick as they were dark, and I woke to Jasper staring at our door as if it had personally offended him. I pressed myself tightly against his side and angled my chin upwards to watch his face. He looked down at me and sighed, kissing me softly on the lips by way of morning greeting.

“Honey, what’s wrong?” I asked, and he took a notebook off his nightstand and passed it to me.

“I made a note of every time. It was getting more than a little annoying.” he said as I read over his list of comments made during the night by Irina, mostly about the presence of humans being too dangerous for the baseball game despite the fact that the plan wouldn’t work if Bella and I weren’t there.

“Don’t stress about it, okay?” I told him, and he chuckled merrily. “There are enough other things to worry about right now, like how I plan on dressing everyone for this game, so we don’t need to add anything else to the pile.”

“I’ll volunteer to be your first dress-up doll for the day, Darlin’. Do your worst.” he said grinning down at me as I pulled his face down to mine for another kiss.

When our kiss ended, we got out of bed and went into our closet. I observed rows upon rows of shoes, jeans, and shirts before making any decisions; the end result had been a sudden idea that had popped into my head after catching sight of a particular orange and blue raglan. While his shoes and jeans were some that he’d worn during training sessions with our family before, Jasper’s shirt was the Houston Astros raglan I’d picked up for him the last time Rosalie and I had gone shopping together. The main part of the shirt was white with the Astros logo in the center and navy along the collar and edges of the sleeves, while the sleeves themselves were orange and only three-quarter allowing some of his scars to remain visible. I wanted the nomads to know who they were dealing with if they crossed my mate, but I would’ve been lying if I said I hadn’t picked out the particular outfit because it showcased his muscles and accentuated his backside quite nicely.

“I didn’t need to know that Alice!” Edward called a few seconds later, and I giggled.

“Focus on someone else if you don’t wanna hear it, Eddie!” I replied before turning to see a confused looking Jasper.

“What is it now?” he asked, chuckling, and I grinned.

“Edward didn’t particularly care to know that I think this pair of jeans makes your ass look amazing.” I told him, and he smirked.

“Oh really?” he asked, teasingly, and I nodded.

“How’s that song go again? ‘Why'd you come in here looking like that?/In your cowboy boots and your painted-on jeans/All decked out like a cowgirl's dream/Why'd you come in here looking like that?’” I sang with a giggle, and he laughed a real laugh before kissing me again.

“I love you so much, Darlin’, and you’ll always be the only girl I take out on the town.” he said as we broke apart.

“I’d hope so, and I love you, too, honey.” I replied. “Tell Bella and Edward I’ll be in to help them in a few minutes and that this is non-negotiable?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Jasper said before beginning to change into the outfit I’d picked for him while I moved over to my side of the closet and began going through my choices.

It was difficult to keep my eyes on my clothes when I knew what was going on behind me, and I couldn’t stop myself from sneaking a peek. Jasper didn’t appear to be in a hurry, which meant that he knew what I was doing, as he’d so far only managed to take off the t-shirt he’d worn to bed. My eyes roamed over every scar and muscle covering his back, shoulders, and arms. He removed his pajama pants next, and I smiled when he bent down to pick his clothes up from the floor and drop them into the hamper. He sat down to pull on his socks, and then he grabbed the pair of jeans I’d picked out for him. He didn’t look at me the whole time, but I knew that he knew what he was doing. He looked up after zipping up his jeans, and I was still grinning.

“Okay, so I might’ve lied a little bit, honey.” I said, not caring who heard me at this point. “It’s not just your ass. Every bit of you is sexy, and I can’t wait for prom to get here.”

“Is that so, Darlin’?” he asked teasingly, and I nodded.

“I have the perfect dress picked out and everything.” I told him, motioning him over with my index finger and unzipping the garment bag holding my prom dress as he got close. “What do you think, cowboy?”

“I think that we might not be spending very long at prom.” he said as he took in what the dress looked like on the hanger. “I also think that I can’t wait to see this on you just so I can take it right back off and leave it on the floor for the night. I promise, I won’t tear a single stitch.”

“I know you won’t, but you should probably finish getting dressed. Sadly, we don’t have time to run away today, and we’ve probably already made the rest of the family feel awkward enough as it is, honey.” I said, and he chuckled before kissing me once more on the lips and pulling his shirt on over his head.

I heard Jasper leave to give our siblings a heads up, and I refocused my mind on my clothes instead of the thoughts of what I’d rather be doing with my day that kept threatening to intrude again and again. Though I had options, I started thinking that it would be a good idea to match my outfit to Jasper’s if for nothing other than to make a point. My decision became solid when I heard Edward’s laughter. I pulled on my jeans and a plain t-shirt before pulling my Astros hoodie that I’d bought on the same shopping trip over my head. I pulled on my orange converse and ran a brush through my hair before putting on minimal jewelry (i.e., my family crest choker and the aquamarine stud earrings my parents had gotten me for Christmas that matched the ring that never left my finger). Satisfied with how I looked, I made my way to Edward and Bella’s room to find them sitting patiently on the bed waiting for me.

“This won’t take long, nor will it hurt.” I told them before walking into their closet and returning all of ten minutes later with a stack of clothes for each of them.

“Alice, why don’t Bella and I match?” Edward asked, seeing the blue and green of Bella’s pile versus the red, white, and blue of his own.

“You’re a Cubs fan, Edward, and Bella’s a Mariners fan. It’s just another thing she got from Charlie.” I said, and Bella snorted.

“She’s also taking advantage of the fact that Mississippi doesn’t have any pro teams. Emmett’s probably gonna do the same, honestly. I’m fully expecting to see him decked out in matching Yankees colors with Rose.” she said, and I nodded.

“Dad, too.” I pointed out, and they grinned before Bella took her clothes to hers and Edward’s bathroom and I left my brother to change while I checked in on our other siblings.

Rosalie had indeed dressed herself and Emmett in navy and white, and she’d been just as humored by my outfit choice as Bella had been. When the five of us made it downstairs, I made my way over to the kitchen island where Jasper was waiting for me with my breakfast. The cousins were in the family room wearing ordinary clothes that were good enough to play baseball in, and I was sure that I’d heard Eleazar chuckle at our family’s outfit choices when Carlisle and Esme entered the room dressed in near-matching Reds shirts and jeans.

Aside from Edward and Jasper, the vampires all left while Bella and I were eating breakfast. Once she and I had finished, we washed the dishes and went down to the garage with the boys. Edward and Bella got into the backseat as Jasper and I got in front, and Bella immediately asked me why I had told Jasper why Edward had been grossed out by my thoughts knowing that everyone else would hear me. While the question should’ve sounded like she was berating me, her laughter made her feelings on what I said clear.

“I don’t really care who hears things like that.” I told her. “Jasper and I make it a point to try to always be honest with each other, and he asked why Edward was bitching about my thoughts.”

“You have a point, and that’s a good practice to maintain, but it still feels a little personal to let everyone hear it.” Bella replied, and I looked over my shoulder at her with a smirk on my face.

“Bells, it’s not exactly a secret that I can be an evil bitch when I want to be, nor is it a secret that Tanya, Kate, and Irina became the sex-crazed inspiration for the succubus demon in dealing with their grief over Sasha’s death. Kate’s changed her ways since meeting Garrett, but the other two haven’t; Tanya still looks at Edward as this unattainable thing that she needs to satisfy her collection at the very least, and Irina is a hopeless romantic who sees romantic intentions behind everything. I make it no secret that I find Jasper to be sexy as hell with an amazing ass, and I have zero qualms about letting them know that they can look all they want but can’t touch what’s mine.” I said, and my sister smirked back at me.

“Emmett was right; you are gonna be vicious as a newborn.” she said, and I beamed with pride.

“I try.” I said, feigning humility momentarily before bursting into giggles along with my sister as Jasper parked the truck along the edge of the field where the rest of our family and friends had gathered to play baseball.

The four of us got out of the truck and made out way over to where the others were gathered. Eleazar was speaking with Sam and Jared, and Irina and Tanya were introducing themselves to the merfolk properly. Esme and Emmett were bouncing between the two groups, though Emmett stuck closer to the wolves. Carlisle and Rosalie were discussing teams as we approached, and they appeared to agree on something as their voices raised to a volume perceptible to humans.

“Good, you’re finally here!” Rosalie said as she turned to Bella and me. “You two get to be team captains and pick your players since you can’t actually play in the game.”

“Bella, it’s also been requested that you act as umpire while Alice acts as lookout.” Carlisle added, glancing over his shoulder at Esme. “It was your mother’s request, actually.”

“She thinks we cheat!” Emmett called to us, and Esme laughed.

“I know you cheat!” she shouted back, and Bella and I both agreed to our roles.

Everyone moved closer together and formed a line in front of the two of us as Bella and I ended up on opposite sides of home plate. It reminded me a bit of playing kickball in elementary school, and I did my best to not laugh. Angela stepped forward with a quarter in hand and a humored smile on her face.

“Okay, so Alice gets heads, Bella gets tails. Whoever wins gets first pick, and the other gets to pick if their team starts at bat or in the field.” she told us before tossing the coin into the air and watching it land on the grass between the three of us. “It’s tails.”

“Edward.” Bella said almost immediately, as I’d suspected she would, and Edward zipped over to her side of home plate.

“Jasper.” I said, getting the obvious picks out of the way, and Jasper was at my side before I’d even finished saying his name.

“Emmett.” Bella picked our brother, who jovially made his way over to hers and Edward’s side, and I smirked.

“Rosalie, you’re with us!” I called, and my older sister joined Jasper and me with a laugh.

“Sorry, babe, but you’re going down this time.” she said to Emmett as we high-fived.

“Jared, my team!” Bella called, and the Beta wolf jogged to her side of the plate.

“Sam, over here!” I said, and the Alpha wolf looked conflicted for a moment at being on the opposite side from his packmate before shaking his head and smirking.

“Eleazar, join us?” Bella asked our cousin politely, and he chuckled as he walked over to her.

“Of course, cousin.” he said with a smile, and I sighed.

“Dad, please?” I asked Carlisle, and he grinned as he came to stand with the rest of my team.

“Ange?” Bella called, and our friend happily joined her.

“Mrs. Weber?” I asked, and Angela’s mom joined my team.

“Call me Tara, Alice, I insist.” she said, and I nodded as Bella made her next pick.

“Ben.” he jogged over to Angela’s side as Bella called his name.

“Mrs. Cheney? Linda?” I asked, and Ben’s mom joined my team.

“Mr. Cheney, I mean, Dave?” Bella picked Ben’s dad, and his wife and pod mate jeered as he joined the opposite team with their children.

“Irina, are you with me?” I asked, and the youngest of my blonde cousins gave me a nod before coming over to my team.

“Alright, Bella, you’re picking for both teams right now.” Angela said, as it was now down to just Tanya and Esme, and I didn’t need my gift to know which one Bella was picking.

“Mom?” she asked, smiling, and Esme smiled back as she joined Bella’s team and Tanya joined mine.

“Teams have been picked, so now it’s up to Alice to decide who’s up to bat first.” Carlisle said, and I nodded.

“My team’s going to bat first.” I said, and everyone began moving into place except for Jasper and me.

Instead of walking towards the field, Jasper picked me up and set me on the truck’s tailgate. When he’d parked, he’d backed the truck up to where the tailgate was almost directly behind where Esme and Bella stood at home plate. Someone would be with me at all times, and I felt as secure as I could until it would be time for the nomads to show themselves. Rosalie was up to bat first, and she smirked at Dave who’d been selected at the pitcher for Bella’s team. Lightning crackled overhead, and I couldn’t help but smile.

“It’s time.” I said, and Dave threw out the first pitch of the game.

Rosalie swung with perfect timing and took off from home plate as soon as the ball had begun sailing back in the opposite direction. Edward took off after it, and he reappeared just as she rounded third. He threw the ball hard across the field, and Esme caught it, bringing it down to the plate just as Rosalie slid. When Bella called her as out, Rosalie gave her a mock glare before coming to sit beside me on the tailgate.

“You did good, Rose, and I think you might’ve stunned the wolves when you slid. I don’t think they thought of you as the type to let herself get dirty even after what you told Jake about Bella’s truck.” I said, bumping her shoulder with mine.

“Thanks, Al, and remind me later to tell you what Emmett and I thought about getting her for her birthday.” she replied as we both turned to watch Carlisle step up to the plate.

As the two dads squared off, I couldn’t help but giggle. Carlisle hit the fastball he’d been thrown straight down the middle of the field between where Edward and Emmett were standing. I watched as my brothers leapt into the sky at the same time to grab it only to end up smacking into each other instead. Carlisle shook his head and smiled at their antics as he stopped on second. Sam stepped up to bat next, and the sound the bat made as it collided with the ball was no less thunderous from a shapeshifter than it was from a vampire. Sam ran as soon as he’d hit the ball, but he stopped at first while Carlisle made it all the way back to home plate putting my team up 1-0. Tara went next, and this was the first time most of us would get to see what a mermaid was capable of outside of the water as Dave had already promised not to go easy on his pod. He threw a splitter, but Tara didn’t fall for it and swing early. She swung with just a perfect timing as Rosalie had, and the sound was equally loud to the previous three hits. She took off around the plates while the ball sailed into the forest line, and Ben took off after it. Tara caught sight of him at the edge of the trees with the ball and realized that he was planning on throwing to Emmett who would tag her out on second if she didn’t beat him to the base. She slid just as Ben threw, but unlike with my sister, she hit the base before Emmet could bring the ball down, thus making her safe. Linda was up to bat after Tara, and the slider that her husband threw barely phased her as she swung the bat and ran as the roaring crack of the bat against the ball sounded in all our ears. Linda made it to first, Tara was on third, and Irina stepped up to bat. Though her swing was good and connected with the bat, Irina became my team’s first out when Eleazar caught the ball; he saw Tara headed for home plate and threw to Esme, but it was too late. She touched home at the same time Linda got to second, and Tanya moved to bat.

While Tanya was at bat, I looked over at Jasper to see him tossing his bat around as if he were juggling a bowling pin. I giggled, and he smiled at me. He was up next, but that didn’t stop him from coming over to me and leaning down for a kiss that I was all too happy to give him. When we broke apart, he moved to home plate to take his turn at bat. Rosalie would be up again next, so she got up from the tailgate and made her way over to where she’d left her bat. Carlisle took her spot beside me.

“He loves showing off for you, Poppet.” he said, inclining his head towards where Jasper was bouncing his bat around again.

“I know, and I’ll let him go on doing this until he decides he doesn’t need to anymore.” I admitted with a giggle as I watched my mate take off towards first before, unfortunately, Emmett climbed a tree and caught the ball to make Bella call him as out.

“Well, I’m up next.” Carlisle said as he stood, chuckling as Jasper hurried over to take his spot and pull me into his lap.

The game went on for a few rounds. Linda had volunteered to be the pitched for my team, telling me that Dave had had to practice against someone, and it was fun to just watch everyone having a good time despite knowing what was coming. We were about two hours in, and the score was 6-4 to my team, when I felt the pull of a vision. Jasper was with me again, having sat down on the tailgate and pulled me into his lap after his last run, so I leaned back against him for support.

**The nomads were getting dangerously close to the border between the town and the rez, but they stopped when the booming sounds of our baseball game reached their ears. They shot one another curious glances before the average one nodded. The trio took off in our direction without a word.**

As I came out of it, I looked up at Jasper and knew that I must’ve looked as scared as I felt because he pressed a kiss to my hair and held me close. He yelled for everyone to stop, and it was a blur of bodies as the others gathered around us. Edward had seen my vision, and he looked torn between worry and glee.

“They were leaving, potentially headed towards the rez, but then they heard us and decided to investigate.” I said, and Rosalie reached over to take Bella’s hair out of the messy bun she’d pulled it into while acting as umpire.

“Sam, Jared, stick close to Alice and Bella.” my mother said softly, and the two wolves nodded. “If everything goes to plan, your scent will buy us time to get the girls out of here.”

“Emmett, Eleazar, and Ben, help me start gathering the equipment so it looks like we’re packing up to leave.” my father ordered, and the three did as told.

Edward and Bella joined Jasper and me on the tailgate, the four of us resembling bookends with the way she and I sat in our mates’ laps and clung to them for dear life. Jasper was doing his best to calm everyone’s anxiety, and I knew it wasn’t easy for him to do considering his own feelings probably weren’t much different. I kept my eyes on the part of the tree line that I knew the nomads would emerge from, and I tensed as I saw three figures moving towards us out of the mist. Laurent stood in front of James and Victoria, but I knew that this was just an act. James was the coven’s true leader, but he lacked the eloquence of speech that Laurent possessed that made talking with the head of an opposing clan much easier.

“I believe this belongs to you.” Laurent said as he tossed Carlisle the baseball that hadn’t been retrieved after Jasper had shouted for the game to end.

“Thank you.” my father said, his tone as polite as it was clipped.

“My name is Laurent, and these are my covenmates, James and Victoria.” he introduced himself and the other two, and part of me wanted to tell Sam and Jared to finish the trio off right then.

“I’m Carlisle Cullen, and this is my wife, Esme.” my father said as my mother made her way over and wrapped an arm around his waist before surveying the nomads herself. “Our friends and family, the ones behind us, don’t want any trouble, but I’m afraid your hunting activities have had us worried. You see, the man in the boat you killed made it dangerous for the merfolk to get into the water, and vampires are strictly not allowed on the shapeshifters’ land without invitation. Too much hunting in one place makes it painfully obvious that not everything is normal, and we don’t want any of that around here.”

“Neither do we, I assure you. We never meant to intrude on another coven’s land, but we have been looking for a human girl for quite some time and were told that she would be in this area. I believe her name is Alice.” Laurent said, and I felt Jasper’s arms tighten around me even more.

“It seems unusual for a coven to search for a single human, so what makes this Alice so special?” Eleazar asked, joining my parents, as if I wasn’t even there.

“We were hired to retrieve her for another coven down South.” said Victoria, her cat-like eyes doing a quick once-over of us all. “They say she’s a powerful psychic, and she could be the key to ending the Volturi’s rule.”

“If you were hired, then there must’ve been an agreed upon price, correct?” Tanya asked, and I began tracing one of the scars on Jasper’s forearm.

“We need the girl alive to get the money we were promised, a hundred-thousand dollars each, and, as I understand it, a percentage of her blood will be removed during her transformation for James; he found her scent to be especially intoxicating when we were given a sample by our employer.” Laurent said, and Jasper growled.

“I can pay you double to turn and walk away right now; act as though you couldn’t find the girl or any trace of her; and never return to our land.” Carlisle said, and the trio of nomads seemed to realize that he knew more about me than he likely should.

“You know the girl.” Victoria stated, and her eyes searched over us again before turning to her companions. “The three males from the forest are here, as are three of the vampires from Alaska.”

“Which one mentioned the girl by name again?” James asked, tilting his head to the side as he stared at us.

“The blond one.” Victoria said, her eyes locking onto Jasper and me. “Bingo.”

James lunged, but Emmett ran forward and grabbed him. Victoria rushed to his aid, only to find herself stopped by Esme and Rosalie, and Laurent stood in front of Carlisle with a surprised expression on his face.

“Why are you protecting this girl? Are you planning to use her powers for yourself?” he asked, and my father let out a growl far deeper and more menacing than I’d heard before from him.

“ _This girl_ is my daughter, and she will not be going back to Maria or fed on by anyone.” Carlisle said in a cold, harsh tone completely void of his usual compassion. “I think it’s time you leave.”

“I believe you are correct.” Laurent said, obviously knowing to choose his battles wisely. “James, Victoria, we must go. This is not a fight we will win on this day.”

The redhead and her mate pulled back and followed Laurent back into the forest. Once they were out of earshot, my parents, Emmett, and Rosalie ran to the truck. Jasper released his hold on me once he realized what I wanted, and I wasted no time in throwing myself into my father’s open arms.

“Dad-” I couldn’t form words beyond this, but Carlisle understood.

“It’s alright, Poppet, you’re safe.” he said, giving me a hug. “I’m so sorry that we didn’t know they’d recognize you.”

“They didn’t, Dad, they recognized me, Em, and Jazz.” Edward said, Bella having been released into Esme’s arms. “Laurent wasn’t sure about taking Alice after you made the offer to pay double what Maria offered, and he was impressed that you have the money to pay double.”

“We need to move on with Plan B, and we need to do it fast.” Jasper said, standing up from the tailgate.

“We’ll go back to the rez and do a perimeter check.” Sam said, Jared nodding along beside him, and both ran into the woods, returning to our sight in their wolf forms moments later before bolting off in the direction of the rez.

“Victoria tried crossing onto the rez, and Embry phased. She’s gone now, ran before he or Paul could get her, but they’re going to keep looking for her.” Edward said, still tense.

“Tara, Linda, and I need to get back to town in case they try creating bedlam to force you into giving Alice up, and Angela and Ben need to get back to Tara’s to keep an eye on Noah and the boys.” Dave broke in, and Carlisle nodded.

“Thank you for your help today, and thanks for the game. If you ever want a rematch, I’m sure we’d be all too happy to accommodate.” my father replied, and Dave grinned.

“You’re on, Doc.” he said before the five merpeople ran through the woods back towards town.

“Tanya, Irina, and I will head back to your house and wait there in case they went looking for you all at home.” Eleazar said, stopping when I called out for them to wait as a brief vision blinked into my mind’s eye.

“Laurent’s going to be waiting, but he doesn’t want a fight. He wants to talk to Dad.” I said, and Carlisle nodded.

“Emmett and I can ride back with our siblings, so you and Mom should go with the cousins. We won’t be far behind you.” Rosalie said, and our parents agreed before disappearing into the trees headed towards home while the six of us piled into the truck.

On the ride home, Edward told us what he’d seen in James’ mind. The man was a hunter, and his tracking abilities were as supernaturally charged as Emmett’s strength but more similar to my own gift. With the slightest hint of his prey’s scent, James could predict what the most likely scenario would be for said prey’s movements. Though not always perfect, he was deadly accurate.

“He doesn’t know that we know that he’ll follow us wherever we go, so we still have one advantage. Though she knew we’d potentially be in the generally area, Maria didn’t warn them of any of our powers and abilities. In fact, all three were distinctly surprised when Dad called their employer by name.” Edward said, and Jasper sighed.

“Then she either wanted them to fail or wanted us to lead James into a trap that would result in a fight to the death.” he said. “As loathe as I am to admit this, I know that woman, if you can still call her that, better than anyone. She would never send someone to do her dirty work and expect a positive result without giving them all the information they need beforehand as to ensure a victory.”

“So, we stick with Plan B.” I said. “If it’s a fight she wants, it’s a fight she’ll get. I don’t see her until several years down the line in my visions, so she won’t interfere just yet.”

“Great, we’re going to Arizona then.” Bella said with a roll of her eyes.

“Don’t worry, Bells, everything’s gonna be fine.” Emmett reassured her. “I said it a year ago, and I’ll say it again now: No red-eyed scumbag is gettin’ near my little _sisters_ on my watch.”

We all fell silent as Jasper turned into the driveway. As soon as he’d parked the truck in the garage and cut the engine, the six of us were out of the cab and hurrying up the stairs. We found the others in the formal living room, and Laurent turned as he caught mine and Bella’s scents.

“Two of your daughters are human?” he asked, and my parents nodded.

“Alice is ours legally and emotionally as well as being Jasper’s mate; Bella is Edward’s mate, but that doesn’t make her any less our daughter. The emotional bonds are tighter amongst families like ours opposed to covens like the Volturi.” Carlisle told him, and Bella smiled at his words.

“Tanya and I have a sister, Kate, who’s son is human. It’s all becoming quite normal for us.” Irina said, and I was surprised until Edward sent me a vision detailing Irina’s thoughts.

‘ _This is not gonna end well, and I don’t see Kate and Garrett being very happy about this._ ’ I thought, and Edward agreed.

“Dad, are we sure this is a good idea?” he asked, and Tanya rolled her eyes.

“It’s not his choice, Edward, it’s mine. Elliot has all of us to protect him, so I doubt it’s going to be a problem.” she said, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

“Just keep an eye on him.” Edward warned, and Eleazar nodded.

“Don’t worry, we will be keeping a very close eye on Laurent as he adjusts. I refuse to see harm come to my nephew, so I see no reason to not monitor his progress.” he said.

“Thank you, Laurent, for your information.” Carlisle said. “Take care to listen to what Eleazar and Garret have to say about maintaining this diet. Eleazar was with the Volturi for a number of years and had to wean himself off human blood the hard way, and Garrett only made the switch last November.”

“Thank you, Carlisle, for giving me a chance.” Laurent said, and then he and the cousins left.

“Eleazar says he’ll send a text when they’re home.” Edward told us, and we started to relax a bit after this. “They’ve found the house, but only James is getting closer. He’s sent Victoria elsewhere, but he’s not going to attack either. He’s going to listen to see where we go because he knows we won’t stay here.”

“Alright, we need to get ready to leave. Grab your bags, grab your mates, and let’s get this show on the road before one of my windows gets smashed.” Esme said, and we all hurried to get our pre-packed weekend bags that were packed for Plan B.

Plan B wasn’t elaborate or well thought out, but it was a plan. We had three different routes mapped out from Forks to Phoenix, and the hotel had already been booked. All we needed to do was get James to follow us down there, and it would be easy enough to lure him out into the desert to rip him limb from limb and start a bonfire.

When we left, we took four different cars. Esme rode with Carlisle in his Mercedes, while Rosalie and Emmett took the Jeep. Edward and Bella were in the Volvo, and Jasper and I had Esme’s Bentley to ourselves. We drove along the highway as a group, but every now and then, one car would break off and take one of the alternate routes for a while before rejoining the other three. Edward sent us a text when he heard from Eleazar, confirming what we suspected Garrett’s reaction would be, and told us that Bella had fallen asleep. I envied her in that moment because, even with Jasper trying to make me drowsy, I couldn’t force myself to sleep.

With the speed at which vampires tend to drive, we made it to Phoenix in just under fifteen hours with stops to feed Bella and I factored in, and I was exhausted. Carlisle checked us into the hotel while we grabbed our bags and handed keys over to the valet. When we made it to the suite Carlisle had booked, Rosalie went into the bathroom with Bella and me so that we could change into our pajamas while still being guarded. Once that was done, Bella and I were ushered into the lone, king-sized bed in the suite by our clearly worried mates. Edward sat on the bed at Bella’s side, and Jasper mirrored him at mine. With my little sister sleeping on my left and my mate holding me in his arms on my right, I somehow managed to fall asleep, too.

When I woke, Bella was beside me on her phone with someone, Charlie based on her word choice. Our mates, siblings, and parents were gathered around the coffee table with papers strewn about the surface. It was still light out, so I knew we would be in the suite for a few more hours at least. Jasper noticed I was awake first, though Edward and Bella had equally been a close second due to her being right beside me and Edward hearing my thoughts, so it was of little surprise to me when he followed me into the bathroom after I’d gotten up from the bed.

“What do we know so far, what’s the plan?” I asked as I rifled through my bag for clothes.

“Charlie called Bella after he got a call about someone breaking into the office at Forks High School, and we figure that it’s Victoria tryin’ to see where all you two might go if you’re forced to run like we were. Knowing that you won’t go back anywhere near Maria, they decided to focus on Bella, and that leads here.” he told me.

“Right, we were counting on that. Is there more?” I replied, and he nodded.

“Bella, our Bella if you can believe it, took ballet lessons as a child. Her old studio is set to be demolished in a couple of days to make way for a new, state of the art performing arts center, so we’re hoping that he’ll think of that as a perfect battleground.” Jasper said, and I swallowed hard as the vision I tried to force refused to come. “Darlin’, what’s wrong?”

“Everything’s gone. Because the decision is out of our hands, I can’t see any of our futures beyond sundown tonight.” I said, knowing the rest of the family, sans Bella who would have Edward tell her, could hear.

“Hey, it’s gonna be alright. Once James makes a choice about where to fight, you’ll know. I promise, we’ll be home before class tomorrow.” he tried to reassure me, but I shook my head.

“Jasper, you don’t understand. I can’t see _anything_ in our futures, even the babies.” he pulled me into his arms as I told him this. “My babies are gone!”

“They’ll be back. As soon as this is all over, you’ll have a vision of their beautiful little faces and everything will be fine, I’m sure of it.” he told me, and I wanted to believe him, but not having my powers left me very unsettled.

Not long after night fell, Bella’s cellphone rang again. She had told Charlie when he’d called that she and I had driven down to pick up a few things she’d left behind in storage, like books that she wanted to read or would need for the next school year, and he’d told us both to be safe. We knew he wouldn’t likely call again until Bella called him to say that we were on our way back. She answered hesitantly, and we waited.

As she spoke to James on the phone, I saw him in the first vision I’d had since leaving Forks. He was pacing the length of an empty ballet studio, holding a phone with one hand and a camcorder with the other. In the distance, an old home movie of Renee’s was playing. I could see tiny child Bella in a pink leotard and tutu frowning on the screen. It ended when Bella hung up the call and looked up at the rest of the family.

“He wants Alice and me to come to the dance studio alone tonight, or else he’s gonna kill Renee.” Bella said, but I shook my head at her.

“He doesn’t have her, Bells, just her old camcorder and a home movie of you guys.” I said, and she frowned.

“But we have to go along with it, don’t we? Even if he doesn’t know that we know she’s not really there, we have to do something to throw him off his guard enough for the guys to get the drop on him.” she responded, and I shrugged.

“It doesn’t matter because you’re not going, at least not alone.” Emmett said as if daring us to disagree.

“Your brother’s right, girls, it’s too risky. You’ll take a cab from the front of the hotel to the studio and go in alone, but we’ll be close by so that when he does try to attack, we’re there to step in and protect you both.” Esme broke in, and I checked the future to see as much as I could.

“Stick to the nearby rooves, and you should be fine.” I said, and they all nodded.

“Remember, remember!/The fifth of November,/The Gunpowder treason and plot;/I know of no reason/Why the Gunpowder treason/Should ever be forgot!” Emmett chanted, and I smiled while rolling my eyes.

“Em, it’s April 24.” I pointed out with a chuckle. “You can’t even use your favorite _Miss Congeniality_ quote.”

“We also don’t have any gunpowder.” Bella said, smiling. “Not to mention that this plot is so not treason.”

“Eh, you’re right. I’ll save it for when the Volturi attack.” Emmett agreed, smirking at us.

Bella and I followed Esme’s instructions to the letter. When we stepped inside the ballet studio, I did my best to keep my emotions in check. I was to be the panic button to signal my family to come to the rescue because Jasper would sense it the moment my emotions changed. Bella called for her mother as if she actually thought Renee was there, and we walked together over to the closet where the television set with the tape playing on it was hidden. Bella threw the doors open and stopped as she saw the video on the screen. Not looking at me, she began speaking the short monologue we’d practiced before leaving the hotel.

“I’m so sorry!” she told me, and I if I didn’t know better, I’d have thought she meant it.

“It’s okay, Bella, really. Dad’s out looking for us, and the boys will be helping him soon. It’s all gonna be alright, just wait and see.” I told her in a whisper, playing along.

“How touching.” a voice sneered behind me, and I turned to see James leaning against one of the mirrors at the other end of the room.

“Let her go, James. You don’t even want her, so what’s the point?” I demanded, but he merely laughed.

“Who said I didn’t want her? She would be a delectable snack for later, no doubt.” he said with a predatory grin.

“You could walk away without any consequences and two-hundred-thousand dollars richer right now, so why do any of this?” I asked, but he shook his head.

“You don’t remember any of it, do you?” he asked me, and I stared confusedly at him.

“Remember what?” I asked, and he sighed.

“You don’t remember going to the hospital when you were about nine-years-old, being dropped off by your father before your mother had even been released from the maternity ward? You don’t remember the tests they ran on you in the psychiatric ward? The Rorschach tests? The electroconvulsive therapy? The pills? You don’t remember your mother coming to get you when your sister was two-months-old and she’d only just realized that you weren’t in the house?” he asked, and I shuddered as long-buried memories from my childhood began surfacing.

_“It’ll only be for a few days, Buttercup. The doctors will figure out why you keep having all these bad dreams so that you’ll be back to normal by the time that Mama and the new baby come home.” Richard told me, and I nodded my head as he led me into the beige and white building._

_Doctors and nurses came in and out of my room, some nice and others not, asking me questions and playing games with me. Rock, Paper, Scissors was the most common. I never lost a single round. Every time I made a correct prediction, a nurse gave me a pill. It would make my mind less active, make me normal again, they said, and I believed them. Days turned into a week, and more games and tests were conducted. One of them made me feel weird and tingly, like I’d stuck a fork in a light socket; I hated that test most of all. Then, a few weeks into my stay, a new doctor appeared._

_The new doctor reminded me of Dad, but he had dark hair and spoke with a thick accent. He gave me candy instead of pills, and he praised me whenever I made a correct prediction. The other doctors went away, and it was only the two of us and a nice nurse by the second week._

_One night, the doctor woke me up without realizing it by yelling at another man. He was plain, nothing impressive, but his focus was me. He wanted me. No, he wanted my blood. He wanted the doctor to let him kill me, but the doctor threatened him instead. The average man who wanted my blood disappeared, and Mama came to pick me up when the doctor released me a few days later. I saw him one time more after that, talking with an olive-skinned woman down on our boat dock one night after Mama had died._

_“I want the girl soon, Maria.” he said forcefully, but she didn’t flinch. “I didn’t bring you here to set you up with a rich human for you to relieve of his assets for you to go back on our deal.”_

_“I may have a use for her one day, and it would be much to noticeable if something happened to her so soon after her mother’s demise.” Maria responded. “You’ll have her when I say and not a moment sooner, James.”_

_James left the dock in disappointment, and I scrambled back to my bed before Maria realized that I’d been spying on her from my window. She had saved me, if even unintentionally, so that she could kill me when it was most convenient for her. I didn’t sleep well that night or any other night for the following month. All I could do was wait for Maria to decide that she didn’t have a use for me after all. I didn’t sleep well again until the night I had a vision of a man with blond, curly hair smiling down at me._

The memories cleared, and I looked up at the sadistic monster. He was smirking now, a sickeningly disturbing sight, and I felt his gaze on me. I wanted to throw up, but I knew that I needed to protect Bella, to stall him until the rest of our family arrived.

“You set my father up with Maria to get to me; you bargained with her to get my blood. This was never about the money, was it?” I asked, and he shrugged.

“Can’t it be both?” he asked, and I snorted.

“You’re a hunter, and life is nothing without prey for you to catch. There’s no way in hell that it could be both.” I replied, and his eyes continued to bore into mine.

The hunter stalked me like I was a frightened deer. In the situation I was in, I might as well be. I knew Bella would do something stupid given the opportunity, if only because she cared so much about the people in her life, but I couldn’t bring myself to have any regrets about following my best friend, my sister, into this death trap.

I thought of my human family as we stood there, staring down the hunter waiting to strike. Cynthia would understand, perhaps, and she had Seth, Lauren, our friends, and Aunt Catherine to take care of her. Someone would be dying here today, I thought. Whether it would be me, I was still unsure. My visions had become increasingly unclear about my death, but this seems a bit cliché of a way to go. Hopefully, the two of us that would walk out of here wouldn’t be doing so covered in blood.

The hunter stalked closer to me, his fanged teeth bared. This was it. My end was near; the hunt was near complete. I gulped, and then the skylight shattered.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Jasper growled lowly as he landed between James and me while Edward hurried over to Bella.

In the pale moonlight brought in by the shattered skylight, I could see that Jasper had foregone his usual jacket before arriving. His scars, a mosaic of crescent shaped markings against his alabaster skin, were on full display. The Jasper who danced with me, cuddled with me, and brought me flowers was gone. In his place was a battle-hardened soldier with only his mission in mind. I was his to protect, and he wasn’t going to let James anywhere near me.

James charged at Jasper seconds later, and he appeared shocked at how well Jasper fought. James, of course, was willing to fight dirty if it meant getting to sink his fangs into Bella and me. He grabbed Jasper around the neck and slammed him into one of the mirrors, sending glass shards everywhere, and I heard Bella scream. I turned away from the fighting to see a long shard from the mirror cut into her thigh. Blood flowed from her wound, and I saw Jasper tense. James took advantage of the situation and slammed into my distracted mate before charging towards me. I felt frozen to the spot, unable to move away from the hunter or towards my injured sister. Suddenly, Edward rammed into James and sent the hunter flying backwards. I could hear Emmett and Dad behind me working on patching Bella up, and I began walking backwards towards them when I saw James right himself and start back in our direction. Jasper had regained control over himself and worked with Edward in subduing James. I watched as they ripped him limb from limb, and I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy it. Everything was going as close to the original plan as it could, right up until then I felt a sharp, searing pain in my neck. I heard Dad call my name, and then everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry this one took so long, sweets, but supernatural baseball and the Battle of the Ballet Studio are now here for your enjoyment. This chapter mostly goes as one would expect, but there are still some surprises in store down the line. Until next time!


	15. The Sun is Going Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'll never let you go/When all those shadows almost killed your light/I remember you said don't leave me here alone/But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight..."  
>  -"Safe and Sound," by Taylor Swift ft. Civil Wars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter than I'd hoped, sweets, but it still covers a great deal, some of which might anger or trigger you. There will be mentions of near-panic attacks, mental health issues and treatment, and an angry Charlie Swan. Happy reading!

I woke later in a room that was too bright, too white, and too sterile for my liking. Each of my hands was being held by someone else’s, but neither hand was being held by the same person. Turning my head only slightly, I saw Jasper on my left and Esme on my right.

“What happened? Is Bella okay?” I asked slowly, and then I heard Emmett’s deep laugh from the end of the bed I was laying on, alerting me to his presence.

“I told you she’d ask about Bella before herself.” he said to Jasper, and my mate rolled his eyes at our brother before returning his focus to me.

“Victoria bit you, but I sucked all of her venom out before you could be turned.” he told me, and I blinked in surprise.

“Are you okay? I’m sorry that you had to do that, honey. How’d she even get here?” I responded, but he waved me off before Esme started talking.

“We underestimated Victoria, sweetheart. She did actually try getting back onto the reservation to get to Catherine, Cynthia, and Lauren, after James started tracking us but the pack was able to run her off before she had barely even reached the vicinity Billy’s house. She decided to find James once she realized that Laurent had left, and Rose and I followed her into the studio after we saw her on the roof. As for Jasper having to get her venom out of you, he stopped the second he tasted your blood without the venom in it.” she told me, and I looked confusedly at all three of them for a moment.

“How’d you do that? Where’s Rose?” I asked, and Emmet answered before Jasper.

“Edward started going on about how he’s obviously a danger to Bella, their impending child aside from what we know, so she took him outside to yell at him to make sure that he didn’t manage to make Bella feel any worse than she already does for agreeing to the plan and all that.” he said, and I tried to shrug as best I could with the two vampires clinging to me.

“As far as your blood goes, Darlin’, it tasted so bitter in my mouth. It’s almost as if your body knows that I wouldn’t hurt you, so I subconsciously won’t let me let myself hurt you.” Jasper said.

“What happened to Victoria?” I asked, snuggling into Jasper’s side, and Esme frowned.

“She got away, unfortunately. Your father, Emmett, and Edward were focused on Bella while Jasper, Rosalie, and I were with you, and none of us realized that she’d gone until it was too late. I’m sorry we couldn’t stop her, Alice.” she told me, and I knew that she was right; there was nothing anyone could’ve done.

“Don’t be, Mom.” I said, something Sam said on the beach the month before replaying in my head.

_‘If someone were to try to harm their mate or take their mate from them, the vampire would become enraged and lash out in any number of ways, not one of which is ever considered good.’_

“Alice, what’s with the memory of Sam?” Edward asked as he and Rosalie entered my hospital room, and I let out a soft ‘huh,’ before answering him.

“Victoria had to get away; there’s no other explanation for how it all fits.” I said, and Edward focused on my thoughts for a better understanding.

“She’s got to be fairly pissed off, probably an understatement, for what just happened to James; she’ll want revenge, and she’ll blame us. It makes sense.” he said, leaving the others confused.

“Can someone explain what’s going on with a little more detail, please?” Rosalie asked, and Edward nodded.

“Alice thinks that Victoria’s going to create an army of newborns to take us out in order to avenge James’ death. If she’s working either with or for Maria, using Maria’s tactics would have to be the go-to move for her at this point. In knowing this, we can assume that this is how you two will find Bree; she’s going to be one of Victoria’s recruits.” he explained.

“Son of a bitch!” Rosalie hissed, and I couldn’t blame her for being upset.

“Angel, it’s gonna be fine. We’ll find her, bring her home with us, and protect her from Victoria.” Emmett assured her, but she shook her head.

“Victoria’s not who I’m worried about, Em.” my sister said, and Edward’s eyes bulged out as he heard her thoughts.

“She wouldn’t have so little control, would she?” he asked, and Rosalie raised an eyebrow at him.

“Maria told them about Alice’s gift, Edward, so I doubt she’d take the chance of Alice seeing what she was up to and being able to stop it. If she’s anything like Maria, she’ll do what Maria did. Once she finds and sires her lieutenant, convinces him that they’re destined to be together, he’ll be the one calling the shots. We won’t know who he is, so Alice can’t watch him. Being a newborn himself, he won’t be able to control them; the Volturi will hear about a bunch of vampire-esque deaths in the area and come looking. Aro wouldn’t do it himself, so we can expect the guard to be the ones monitoring the situation. Bree has to be rescued before the Volturi can destroy the coven, and she has to be re-sired so that it becomes someone else’s responsibility to teach her the rules.” Rosalie said, and Jasper nodded.

“Rose makes an excellent point, and we’ll have to be careful once we know the Volturi is on the move. Felix, Dimitri, Jane, and Alec are the most likely to be sent to deal with newborns, so that’s who we’ll have to prepare ourselves to deal with, alright? Once the summer’s over, we’ll get back to training.” he said, pausing before looking at our sister. “You’ll have to be the one who does the ritual, Rose.”

“Why me?” she asked, and he smiled.

“If she knows Alice is watching her decisions, she won’t sire any of the newborns herself after she chooses her lieutenant. She’ll spend his newborn months grooming him until he’s her perfect killing machine, and then she’ll send him out to find recruits. He’ll have to be the one to do it because otherwise her entire plan goes out the window because Alice would see it. It’s what Maria would do…it’s what I’d do.” Jasper said, chuckling at himself before continuing. “As young as the sire would be, you’re easily more powerful than him and have a connection to Bree already because you already love her as your own. The only reason it needs to be you instead of Emmett is because of one of the side effects of the ritual; once she’s been Claimed, your childe will start exhibiting traits similar to that of her sire. I’ve noticed it even in myself; ever since Dad and I did the ritual, I’ve been calmer, even more level-headed, and less prone to bloodlust even when surrounded by thirsty vampires. Think about Emmett’s most potent traits, and then imagine those on a newborn. Because of growing up in a society family and always having all eyes on you and your behavior, you’ve always had better self-control than Emmett, and that self-control is something that can only benefit your daughter.”

“He’s right; sometimes, I’m too wild and rowdy for my own good. Your personality is a lot tamer than mine, babe, so you’re the obvious choice.” Emmett agreed, and Rosalie gave a short nod before taking an unnecessary breath and smiling.

“If you’re all so sure about this, then fine. I’ll do it…right after someone explains what it actually entail.” she said, holding up a hand to stop us from explaining. “I’ll ask Dad about it later. For now, we’re about to have company.”

“Well, it seems that our patient is awake and back to her bubbly self, Dr. Warrens.” I heard Carlisle say, and I whipped my head around to see him and a doctor in a white coat in the doorway.

“That she is, Dr. Cullen. Once I check her vitals, I’d be more than happy to start her release papers.” the doctor said, and Carlisle motioned for my siblings to leave the room.

“C’mon, Eddie-boy, why don’t the three of us go check on Bella while Dad gets his turn smothering Alice now that we know she’ll be okay.” he said before making his way out of the room, the other two right behind him, and Esme moved to stand over by Carlisle while the doctor checked my vitals around Jasper who pointedly refused to move from my side.

Everything was fine, and Dr. Warrens left to start the paperwork a few minutes later. Carlisle closed the door once the doctor had gone, and I felt as though I was in trouble. Jasper tried to give my hand a reassuring squeeze and make me feel calm, but it didn’t help much.

“I’m sorry I froze like that, Dad; it was my fault because I let that bastard get inside my head. From now on, the only person who gets in my head without my consent is Edward because at least he gets embarrassed when he hears things he shouldn’t.” I said, but he merely shook his head and hugged me.

“You did far better under those circumstances than I think most anyone would be able to do, Poppet. Edward watched the tape James had made on Renee’s video-camera, and I am quite proud of you for being able to stall him for so long. I must confess that I did feel anger when I realized what he’d done to you in the past and that I didn’t get to help dismember him, but that is neither here nor there. I love you so much, la mia bambina, and I don’t want you to ever think that caused any of this.” he said, and I nodded against his shoulder.

I sat there, feeling lucky to still be with my family, until the doctor returned with my release papers. While I quite rationally feared Victoria and her eventual retribution, I felt safe with my family. Everything would work out; I could feel it.

Though I was released that afternoon, I refused to return to Forks with Rosalie and Emmett that night. I’d been checking to see when Bella would wake up, her own levels of blood loss much higher than mine, and what I’d seen hadn’t been good. Renee, Phil, and Charlie had all been called in when Bella and I had been brought to the hospital, and if Bella woke to her mother and/or stepfather being the first person she saw, she would become frantic. My parents had relented, and the five of us ended up staying in Phoenix instead of going home with Rosalie and Emmett. We all took turns sitting in Bella’s room with her, as none of her human parents had yet to arrive, and we discussed what story we were going to tell them.

“This is why I wish she’d wake up already.” I said as the four of us sat in her room late Tuesday afternoon with the curtains drawn tightly closed. “Bella makes up way better stories than I do. She’s a master at taking the truth and twisting it into a modern excuse.”

“Let’s start with something small. How do we explain Bella’s truck not being here?” Carlisle asked, and Esme was quick to respond.

“Since Jasper got his truck for his birthday and Alice decided to defer her new car until graduation, Alice and Bella brought my car because I so rarely use it.” she said, and we all nodded.

“Okay, moving on from that, what happened for Bella to get injured?” my father asked, and Jasper gave his idea.

“We need to stick as close to the truth as we can, right? Bella heard that her old ballet studio was being torn down, and Alice, not believing that Bella ever took ballet lessons, asked to see the place. They went to check the place out, but they were attacked by homeless squatters living in the building. Alice was able to call for help, the homeless attackers fled the scene, and we came down when the hospital called you and Mom to say that Alice had been admitted. You knew she was with Bella and asked about a second girl, and they told you that Bella was hurt too, so you said that you’d get the message to her father who was on a long-weekend fishing trip and her mother and stepfather who were on a work trip in Florida. You’re a fellow doctor, so they trust you.” my mate offered as a version of the story we could legitimately sell to anyone who asked.

“It sounds good to me.” I said, and my parents agreed.

“Jasper and I can go double-check the damage at the studio tonight.” Carlisle said quietly, and the door creaked open seconds later to reveal Edward and Charlie.

“Oh, God!” Charlie let out upon seeing Bella, and I understood why.

She hadn’t sustained many injuries, but the amount of blood that Bella lost made her look even paler than usual despite the transfusions she’d been given. I worried for my sister, though I knew she would be alright in the end, and I was more than content to stay as close as I could until she woke. I had a feeling that Charlie, like the rest of my family still here, felt the same way.

“Charlie, everything is going to be just fine. I’ve spoken with the doctors, taken a look at Bella’s charts myself, and been here with her since Alice was released yesterday.” Carlisle said, doing his best to soothe the police chief. “She lost a lot of blood, but she’s had transfusions to stabilize her and an IV to supply her with nutrients while she recovers. She should wake in the next twelve to fourteen hours, maximum, and she should be released in the next few days.”

“How did this happen?” Charlie asked, holding onto Bella’s hand.

“It’s my fault.” I said, and everyone turned to look at me.

“Poppet, it wasn’t your fault. Neither of you girls had any way of knowing those people would be there.” Carlisle told me, knowing my statement was how I actually felt.

“Dad, it _is_ my fault. If I’d just taken Bella at her word that she did ballet when she was little and hadn’t insisted on seeing her old studio before it was torn down, we never would’ve ended up walking into a homeless camp.” I said.

“Homeless camp?” Charlie asked, confused.

“There were squatters living in the ballet studio, probably had been since the place closed down, and they saw Alice and Bella as easy targets when they wandered in there. One of them broke a mirror, and a large shard of glass went into Bella’s thigh and cut her femoral artery. Alice remembered something from all of Dad’s first aid lessons to use her belt as a tourniquet to keep pressure on the wound, and she dialed 911. The squatters must’ve fled when they realized what Alice was doing; nobody was in the building when help arrived. Most of the inside burned because the bonfire the squatters had started for warmth hadn’t been extinguished.” Jasper said, and Charlie took a deep breath.

“Alice, your dad’s right, this wasn’t your fault. You’re the reason Bella’s still alive right now, and you’re also a victim yourself. Blaming yourself if perfectly normal, but it isn’t your fault. How are you doing?” he asked me, and I gave him a small smile.

“Thank you, Charlie, and I’m okay. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still shaken by what happened, but I know that I’ll live. I’ve been so worried about Bella that Jasper had to stay here to make me take care of myself since Edward’s been with Bella and Mom and Dad have been bouncing between us both.” I told him, and he chuckled.

“I’m glad she has a friend like you, Alice.” he said, turning from me to my brother. “And, oddly, I’m glad she’s got someone like you in her life as well, Edward. Most guys your age wouldn’t drop everything to drive 1,500 miles when something like this happens.”

“Thank you, sir.” Edward said quietly. “I don’t think I’ve ever been as scared as I was when she went into surgery.”

“She’ll be awake and on the mend before you know it, son.” Carlisle cut in, regaining Charlie’s attention. “Renee and Phil’s flight should be landing this evening, and Esme offered to pick them up from the airport that way you’ll be able to stay here with Bella.”

“Thank you, both of you.” Charlie said.

“It’s not a problem, Charlie, but let me see if we can get another chair in here for you.” Esme said with a gentle smile, leaving the room before he could object.

That night, as the time for Renee and Phil’s flight to arrive drew nearer, me, Jasper, and my parents left the hospital for their respective tasks. Esme left for the airport to retrieve Bella’s human mother and stepfather, and Carlisle and Jasper went to check the dance studio. I was dropped off at the hotel with instructions to take a shower, get something to eat from room service, and get some rest. I managed two out of three by the time Jasper returned. I’d sent him a text upon having a vision of what was going to happen in Bella’s room if Esme got to the hospital with Renee and Phil before anyone else made it back, and he’d sent Dad back to the hospital before coming to get me.

“Why am I not surprised that Renee would blame this on Charlie?” he asked as we took the Mercedes back to the hospital.

“Probably because it’s easier than blaming herself or accepting the fact that Bella’s almost eighteen.” I said with a snort.

Though he didn’t say anything, I knew by the look in Jasper’s eyes that he agreed with my statement. Bella had, over the last month, confided in us about the reversed parent-child dynamic between Renee and herself. The previous Thursday night when she had come into our room to ask about how we were able to accept Carlisle and Esme as our parents stuck out in my mind.

_It was still somewhat early, only about half-past eight, and Jasper and I were sitting on the bed immersed in separate activities; he was reading while I was drawing. Bella knocked softly on the door, opening it only after Jasper called for her. She asked how he knew it was her, and he laughed._

_“Bella, not only are Edward, Emmett, and Rosalie out hunting, but you’re also the only person in this family who still knocks before entering a room.” Jasper pointed out, and Bella blushed._

_“It’s not really a bad thing, Bells, honest.” I assured her. “What’s up?”_

_“Okay, so obviously, you both had human families before joining this family, and you didn’t get along with all of your human family. How’d you accept this one so easily after the way the first one let you down?” she asked, and I exchanged a look with Jasper._

_“Well, it’s easy to accept a new family when the last one was abusive. My_ sperm donor _beat me and then tried passing me off as a clumsy little girl with mental problems. Coming here, finding Mom and Dad gave me hope that families aren’t all like the one I was born to, and I found a place where I know for certain that I’m wanted.” I said, figuring it best to be honest with her._

_“For me, it was the fact that I hadn’t been in a family setting with rules and structure that wasn’t about fights or killing for so long that having Dad give me a chance saved me from a seemingly endless cycle of depression caused by my gift letting me know exactly how my victims felt before I killed them. To be honest, Bella, I didn’t fully realize that I was an accepted member of this family until Alice showed up a year ago.” Jasper explained, rolling his eyes at my glare. “I know better now than I did then, Darlin’.”_

_“You weren’t sure the family accepted you for fifty years?” Bella asked, and Jasper nodded._

_“I’ve had a lot of slip-ups, more than I’m proud to admit given my age, and I always thought that the others thought less of me because of this. To make up for my shortcomings in that area, I did whatever I thought I needed to for the good of the family. Emmett is never to know, but more than once, I absorbed his thirst and tempered his desires to give in to his bloodlust only to be the one who lost control myself. I shouldn’t have done that, at least not the way that I went about it, but I did because I thought that if I could make some meaningful contribution that I would deserve my place here rather than feel like it was given to me out of pity.” he told her. “After the incident with Rose last year, Mom and Dad sat me down for a long discussion about my place in this family.”_

_“Incident?” Bella asked, and Jasper and I told her of how Rosalie reacted when she found out about the twins. “And you only figured out that you weren’t in danger of being kicked out of the family after that?”_

_“Bella, I should never be used as the measuring stick for anything. I, as a psychologist, can tell you now that I have and have suffered from both social anxiety disorder and post traumatic stress disorder, and neither of these are any easier to deal with as a vampire than as a human. The major depressive disorder symptoms began clearing not long after I joined the family, but the generally positive emotions that I get from everyone helped with that; most of my psychological issues didn’t start easing up until I met Alice, though, so I’m only as comfortable as I am with who I am because Mom and Dad sat me down to tell me that they would never kick me out or love me any less than the others.” Jasper was honest with her, and I was proud of him for that._

_“Is this another Renee thing?” I asked, motioning for Bella to join us on the bed when she nodded._

_“When we talked last night, she mentioned me coming to live with her and Phil in Jacksonville this summer, and I told her I’d think about visiting but that I was really enjoying my life here. She’s been pushing Jacksonville down my throat ever since she got there, but I know that living with her again would not only go against the future you’ve already foreseen but also just be another version of the last seventeen years of my life. I started handling our finances when I was twelve, I paid all the bills until Phil moved in, and I did all the cooking and cleaning. While he might not be the world’s greatest chef, at least Charlie doesn’t need someone to manage his life the way Renee does. She’s my mother, and I love her, but she’s always been more like a friend than a parent. I don’t think I could handle going back to that.” she explained, her tone worn-out._

_“Then don’t go back.” Jasper said with a shrug as if it were the obvious answer. “She may be your mother, but Charlie’s still your father; if you want to stay with him until you turn eighteen in September, there’s very little Renee can do about it without taking the matter to court where Charlie, potentially backed by our lawyers, would almost certainly win if only because you would get to say which parent you got to live with considering the fact that you’re old enough to make that decision for yourself.”_

Bella had smiled when Jasper mentioned that the Cullen family lawyers would be at Charlie’s disposal if something were to happen with Renee’s attempts to get Bella to Florida. Knowing this seemed to also soothe her worries at the time. I could only hope that, if we couldn’t beat Esme, Renee, and Phil to the hospital that Jasper would at least be able to calm Bella down and remind her that it was ultimately her choice as to where she lived.

When we ultimately reached the hospital, we were almost too late. Esme had beaten Jasper and me there, but she was attempting to diffuse the situation along with Carlisle and a mostly silent Edward while Bella lay helpless in the bed between her squabbling parents of all varieties. Jasper and I ignored the arguing and made our way to Bella; she looked to be on the verge of a panic attack when Jasper and I each grabbed one of her hands, and Jasper got to work calming her down before her heart monitor could alert the nurses.

“Bella, look at me little sister.” Jasper near commanded, and Bella did as told. “Tell me five things you can see.”

“You, Alice, a television, Esme’s purse with the special charm with all our birthstones that replaced the zipper pull, and a whiteboard.” Bella answered, and I gave her an encouraging smile.

“What are four things that you can touch?” I asked, knowing the next part of this technique.

“You, Jasper, a blanket, and the bedrails.” my sister said, and I felt her squeeze my hand while watching her squeeze Jasper’s much to his surprise.

“Great, Bells, now tell me three things you can hear.” Jasper said, and Bella nodded.

“Heart monitor, Esme, Renee, and Carlisle.” she said, breathing deeply as she slipped off the oxygen tube at her nose.

“Two things you can smell?” I asked, smiling still.

“I smell that white citrus shampoo you use and that cologne you bought Jasper the last time that you, me, and Rose went to Seattle.” she said, and I felt relieved.

“You’re safe now, Bella-Bug, and no one is getting’ to you in here as long as Mom, Dad, Ed, Alice, and I are here. I won’t bother with the last question since you’re not only calm now but also because you probably aren’t tasting much of anything right now.” Jasper said, getting a small smile out of Bella. “Just remember what I told you about things being your decision.”

“Alice, I’m sor-” she started, but I cut her off quickly.

“If I’m not allowed to blame myself, Bella, then neither are you.” I told her, and she nodded while squeezing my hand again.

“-on’t care what you want at this point, Charlie, because she’d never had a serious enough incident to be admitted to the hospital until she moved in with you in that God forsaken rainy little town where, supposedly, nothing ever happens!” I heard Renee exclaim, and I looked over at the arguing parents and Edward with an expression of annoyance so clear on my face that Edward’s gift wasn’t entirely necessary to understand my thoughts.

“Has anyone here actually asked Bella what she wants? It’s not like she’s a little kid; she’s seventeen, almost eighteen, and plenty old enough to make her own decisions. Any judge in the country would likely agree.” I voiced, and all eyes were then turned on me.

“Renee, this is Edward’s sister and Bella’s best friend, Alice.” Charlie attempted an introduction, but I could tell he was worried that Bella wouldn’t want to come back to Forks.

“Alice is right, though, it should be up to Bella where she lives.” Jasper added, locking eyes with our brother as he spoke, and I rolled my eyes at Edward’s ability to revert to blaming himself.

_‘Don’t be a self-righteous prick, dumbass. If no one’s letting me blame myself despite the fact that they were after me specifically, then you’re not allowed to blame yourself either.’_ I told him via thought, and he gave me a rather reluctant nod that was more along the lines of him refusing to fight when he knew he’d be outmatched that accepting that this had nothing to do with him.

“Alice, what’s going on now?” Bella asked quietly as Jasper introduced himself to Renee and Phil.

“Somehow, Edward thinks it’s his fault that we got hurt, ah, relax, I’m fine, and he’s trying to justify keeping as much space between the two of you until your wedding as possible. I’ve already called him out on his stupidity, and I know it won’t last. If he tries doing it anyway, I’ll send Garrett after him; he’s almost as much of a hopeless romantic as Irina on a good day.” I said, speaking as much to her as I was to the rest of my family.

“Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, get your ass over here right now.” Bella hissed under her breath, and my brother moved to take Jasper’s place while my mate moved to speak with the parents.

“Yes, love?” Edward asked, playing dumb, and Bella narrowed her eyes at him.

“Like Alice just pointed out, this is my decision, not yours. Nothing you say or do will change my mind about us or our future. Distance isn’t necessary, and need I remind you that you’re the one who saved me from Tyler’s van? I’m a danger to myself with or without you, so don’t start with the White Knight routine as if it has any merit whatsoever, okay?” she told him, and I smiled at the way my brother merely gave her a reassuring smile and a nod before dropping a kiss to her hair.

“I won’t do that if you won’t end up in another hospital bed anytime soon, love.” he told her, and she nodded as she leaned into his side.

“-et’s ask her.” I heard Renee’s voice, as did my siblings, and we all looked up to see her looking at Bella. “Sweetie, where do you want to go when you get out of here?”

“I just want to go home, back to Forks where it’s quiet and no homeless people live in abandoned ballet studios.” my sister answered, obviously having been told the cover story by Edward before mine and Jasper’s arrival.

“Forks?” Renee asked, surprised, and Bella nodded. “You really want to go back to Forks?”

“It’s where I belong, I know that now. I have friends in Forks; I even have a life, somewhat! I’ve gotten to be more of a teenage girl since moving there than I have in my entire four-and-a-half years of being a teenage girl. I even go shopping on a regular basis now!” she told the room, and I didn’t bother hiding my laughter at this.

“Rose and I make sure that you get to go to stores you actually like, don’t we?” I asked in mock-offense, and Bella laughed.

“ _Rose_ does it to be nice, but _you_ do it to bribe me into compliance when you wanna play Bella Barbie.” she retorted, and I grinned.

“Well, I mean, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.” I said, and she rolled her eyes good-naturedly at me while half-heartedly swatting at my arm as the boys both let out snorts of laughter.

“Sorry, we were both just thinking that you two and Mom are the only females either of us know of that Rose actually is nice to because she wants to be.” Edward remarked with a smirk.

“Even with the cousins, it’s usually done out of respect for Mom and Dad more than anything else.” Jasper added, and Bella and I gave nods of agreement given what we both remembered from our shopping trip in England.

“No, she does genuinely like Carmen, and Kate’s relationship with her is better now than it was a year ago.” I said after a moment, and the boys conceded this point.

“But we’re still her favorites.” Bella added, and a brief vision of Mother’s Day 2007 flashed into my mind.

“For now.” I said, and they all understood the meaning of my words.

Bella had another two days that she would be required to stay in the hospital, and the five of us remained with her and Charlie the whole time. Renee and Phil were still in town as well, but we made sure to never leave them entirely alone with Bella in case either one got any ideas about trying to change her mind. The day before she was to be released, I had gone down to the vending machines in the cafeteria to get Bella a soda, which was doctor approved as Carlisle had approved of me doing this, when I walked up on Phil talking to Charlie.

“-nee mentioned that she’s fairly sure she knows what you’re doing, and neither of us appreciate it.” Phil said, and I kept myself hidden behind the nearest wall as I listened for Charlie’s reply.

“And what does Renee think I’m doing exactly?” he asked, and I was sure that I was going to get a peek at the cop side of Charlie that I knew was there, he’d been working my uncle’s murder investigation for over a year after all, but had never personally seen.

“You want Bella to live with you to hurt Renee; you’ve always been jealous that she and Bella have a closer relationship than you and Bella.” Phil answered, and I blinked in surprise.

“Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me nearly as much as it should, Phil, and I don’t honestly give a damn what my ex-wife thinks. I want my daughter to live wherever she’s happiest, and if that happens to be with me, then so be it. Hell, if I thought she’d be better off there, I’d let her move in with the Cullens if she wanted. I haven’t given Renee more than a passing thought as the mother of my daughter and a woman I was once married to in years; did she ever tell you the real reason our marriage broke up the way it did?” Charlie responded, and I heard Phil hesitate.

“She told me that she just couldn’t stand staying in Forks and that the two of you didn’t get enough time to get to know one another before you got married and had Bella.” he said, and I heard my best friend’s father chuckle rather darkly.

“So, that’s what she’s told everyone with an interest.” he said, half to himself, before saying something I’d never expected. “Renee left me because she knew I didn’t love her, at least not in the way she wanted me to love her. Renee knew that she wasn’t the woman I’d really wanted to marry, that one of my best friends got the girl because he’s a part of their tribe while I am not, and that I am still friends with both him and her. Renee thinks every little thing is done to hurt her specifically, thinks that I would’ve or maybe did cheat on her with Sue, but that never happened. Not only do I have enough respect for my friends to not break-up their marriage and upset their children’s homelife, but I also would never cheat on a woman or be the other man for someone else. Renee and I are better off not being a couple, and she deserves to be loved by someone who can love only her, but if she thinks for even a moment that I would ever use my daughter to hurt her, then I think she needs to look in the mirror instead.”

Charlie walked away after this, and I silently slipped over to the vending machine. Phil ignored me, but I wasn’t bothered by this. When I made it back upstairs, I relayed everything I’d overheard to Edward; my brother agreed that we would be doubling down on protection detail to include Charlie as much as Bella…at least until the wolves took over for us.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Other than Alice, who was surprised by how angry Charlie got or how he handled Phil? I don't have anything against Phil, but he's just in a peculiar position that allows him to be manipulated as needed, sadly. Up next, it's prom night! Until next time, sweets!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, sweets. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. This story can also be found on FanFiction.net with the same title.


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